July 2, 2022 - All predictions say that this tourist season could be even better than the record pre-pandemic 2019, which makes us wonder - what will happen with CRO Cards?

For those who don't remember, CRO Cards are Croatian tourist cards that work as an electronic voucher with the functionalities of a debit card, reports RTL.

The Ministry of Tourism and Sports told RTL that the Croatian tourist card is available to issue and use. The same was confirmed by Hrvatska poštanska banka (HPB), along with Podravska banka.

"Hrvatska poštanska banka participates in the Croatian Government project with the Ministry of Tourism and Sports to issue the CRO Card, which is issued and used as in previous years. The CRO Visa card of HPB is available as a debit, contactless card linked to a transaction account for special purposes that users can open in any Hrvatska poštanska bank branch. The card is issued according to the requests of natural persons and business entities who decide to pay compensation to their employees via the Croatian tourist Visa card, according to the same rules as before," they stated.

The Ministry adds that HRK 18,710,000 was paid to tourist cards during the last two years, and 74,500 transactions were carried out.

"In the past year, the Ministry encouraged conducting a survey among employers related to using the card, and based on the collected data, it will decide on future steps, especially taking into account the fact that one of our strategic goals is to encourage domestic tourism," they said.

They also remind that payment of services with the Croatian tourist card is possible in all catering facilities that provide food preparation and beverage services (restaurants, cafes, fast food, etc.) and in all facilities that provide accommodation services (hotels, campsites, guesthouses, private renters, etc.) that accept payment via bank cards.

With the Croatian tourist card, it is possible to pay for charter services (boat rentals) and other tourist services in Croatia through tourist agencies everywhere that accept bank card payments.

In addition to other non-taxable rewards that employers can pay to workers in one calendar year, such as holiday pay, the CRO Card also enables the use of catering, tourist, and other services worth HRK 2,500.00 per year tax-free. Furthermore, you can find the catering and tourist service providers with additional discounts on the CRO Card website, they concluded.

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

July 12, 2020 - 1,675 citizens have requested the Cro Card, and by July 10, 1,325 were issued. More are expected in the coming days, as the number of discount service providers is expected to increase, according to the Ministry of Tourism.

T.portal reports that Hrvatska poštanska banka (HPB) is taking care of previous requests and issuing the Cro Cards. They are the only ones actively involved out of the three banks that have signed the agreement so far (HPB, Agram banka and POBA), out of seven that applied to MINT's public call.

Other banks will join per their capabilities and business decisions, while employers, craftspeople, the self-employed, freelancers and farmers can join by paying up to HRK 2,500 on this card for their workers, but also to themselves, which is also tax-free for them.

Any natural person can request a card and use it everywhere, all year round.

Since the cards are not issued to companies but citizens, whether they submit the application in agreement with employers who have decided to pay this non-taxable part of the receipt, or independently, MINT cannot say. They state that 'almost all cards issued so far are paid by employers'.

They also state that most cards have been requested and issued in Zagreb so far, noting that citizens are free to open a bank account and request a Cro Card, which they can use throughout Croatia and throughout the year.

Payment with the Cro Card is possible in all catering facilities that provide food preparation and beverage services (restaurants, cafes, fast food, etc.), in all types of accommodation (hotels, camps, boarding houses, private renters, etc.) that accept payment via bank cards (pos devices), for charter services (boat rental) and payment of other services in Croatia through travel agencies (package arrangements, excursions, etc.), emphasizes MINT.

Unlike others, the Cro Card can provide discounts in catering and tourism, which are expected from service providers, whose number is slowly increasing. In the last day or two, the total number of service providers with discounts from 10 to 20 percent increased to eight.

While it started with one restaurant in Zadar, the seven additions are located mostly in the Dalmatia region. By July 12, they are two restaurants and a stone house for accommodation in Zadar and four hotels in Podstrana, Makarska, Dubrovnik and Vrana / Pakostane. A novelty is an offer in continental Croatia, a hotel in Orahovica.

Service providers do not have to sign any special contract for the Cro Card, nor apply to accept it. They decide for themselves how much discount they will give, and if they want, they can show their offer with discounts on the promotional website.

Expectations from the Cro Card for this year are not high due to the corona crisis.

"It started despite everything, we will highlight all service providers who sign up on the web so that users can see where they can achieve the best conditions for consumption, and we believe that there will be more of them, as well as more cards, in the coming days," concluded MINT. 

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

The Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) has earmarked funds for the promotion of the now somewhat (in)famous Cro card, and as soon as it receives the green light from the ministry, it will start promoting it, Stanicic said, adding that he hopes that will take place in the coming weeks.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 3rd of July, 2020, according to eVisitor, about 330,000 tourists were on holiday in Croatia on the 3rd of this month, which is about 60 percent of the amount which was recorded the same day last year, and most of them are staying in Istria and Kvarner, said Kristjan Stanicic on Friday after a coordination meeting with representatives of tourist boards from Primorje-Gorski Kotar County.

According to him, in June, there were about 800,000 tourist arrivals and about 5 million overnight stays realised, which is 32 to 33 percent of last year's traffic, so, he says, the CNTB's forecast was quite accurate. He added that he expects that percentage to grow in July and August.

At the meeting, Stanicic presented the promotional activities of the CNTB for 2020, and they also discussed joint promotional activities that will be carried out in cooperation with tourist boards from the county and the procedures related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

He pointed out that during the pandemic, the CNTB created three campaigns and maintained the visibility of Croatia through the media and social networks, which enabled Croatia to be one of the few tourist destinations in the Mediterranean where tourist traffic is now taking place. The greater visibility of Rijeka and Kvarner, for example on the extremely important British market, will be contributed by the new two-month issue for July and August of Wanderlust travel magazine, which suggests to readers what to see and visit in 72 hours in Rijeka and Kvarner.

When asked about Slovenian guests, Stanicic said that there are now about 70,000 of them in Croatia, and so far they have realised about 1.1 million overnight stays.

"We're monitoring the development of the situation regarding Slovenia's recommendations to its citizens and I believe that in the coming days, with the number of infected, Croatia will return to the green list and that Slovenians will continue to come and stay in Croatia," he said.

According to Stanicic, most tourists come from Croatia's neighbouring and surrounding countries - Germany, Austria, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, along with domestic guests.

"So far, we've had about 1.7 million guests, who have realised over 8 million overnight stays," he said, emphasising that so far, there have been no tourists infected with coronavirus in Croatia, and that the entire health system in Croatia is functioning well.

Asked if they could be infected with coronavirus, he said they were aware of a certain risk, but that everyone is well prepared, that there were protocols and procedures in place and that all providers of services were aware of them, he added that he believed the risk would be reduced to a minimum measure.

When asked about the frequently discussed Cro card, onto which employers will be able to pay workers up to 2,500 kuna to spend at Croatian tourism facilities, Stanicic said that there are technical details that need to be resolved with the banks and that he believes the Cro card will come to life as soon as those matters are ironed out and eventually resolved.

The CNTB has earmarked funds for the promotion of the Cro card, and as soon as it receives the green light from the ministry, it will start promoting it, Stanicic concluded.

For more on the Cro card and travel to, from and around Croatia in the coronavirus era, follow our dedicated section.

June 26, 2020 — A long-awaited incentive program was meant to solve a basic problem: Croats don’t vacation in Croatia. (At least not on the books). Yet the plan’s odd limitations and poorly-timed launch during a global pandemic and cratering economy render it dead on arrival. Say hello to the zombie voucher program nobody wants and is about to get anyway: the Cro Card!

Croatia’s Tourism Minister stood at an Istrian spa and foresaw the convergence between medical tourism and a new, unique voucher program meant to motivate locals to travel within their own country.

“I believe that our Cro Card will be partly focused on health tourism,” the minister said.

Though the world’s tourism hordes keep adding Croatia to their travel bucket list, Croats statistically don’t share the fervor. As foreigners’ overnight stays skyrocketed over the last 15 years, Croats’ remains flat, and are plunging as a share of overall tourism spending.

That visit to Istria’s spas took place on Sept. 8, 2016. The tourism minister was HDZ’s Anton Kliman. Tihomir Orešković was busy bungling the Croatian language as prime minister.

He would be out of a job within two months, as HDZ held a public mutiny against the same premier it accepted in a power-sharing bargain. The ensuing early elections installed Andrej Plenković as prime Minister. 

Many of Oreskovic’s programs were tossed into the metaphorical bonfire held whenever power changes hands in Zagreb.

Yet Kliman’s successor Gari Cappelli kept the Cro Card voucher program alive. And like many proverbial zombie ideas in the Croatian government, it’s back again. Nobody wants it.

The program expands the tax-free bonuses the government allows employers to dole out to include a HRK2,500 “Cro Card”. The “bonus” would be lodged in a debit card used for accommodations, a night out at dinner, or other tourism services.

But only within Croatia. 

Only at participating businesses.

And not during the high tourism season.

And no online purchases. No reservations or bookings via app or internet. A.k.a.: how the world makes its travel plans.

(These early restrictions have been loosened now that a deadly pandemic put the kibosh on the 2020 season.)

The program was more or less copy-pasted from Hungary’s Szep Card program. Similarly incentivizing employers to dole out vouchers, it ultimately increased overnights by domestic tourists in Hungary by about 30 percent. The Szep Card took off on the heels of mass adoption by government-owned or backed companies.

Croatia’s program took a bit longer to create.

Cappelli’s 2018 report, the first of his tenure, quietly slips in a budgetary item for the Cro Card program. The country spent half a million kunas on the vouchers in 2017; not a single Cro Card was distributed.

It was the start of a mythical, long-touted slog of a launch — perpetually on the verge of release only to cower back into the governmental shadows when the howls of criticism started flying.

The false starts and retreats leave one’s neck aching from whiplash:

Get ready for the Cro Card in 2018! No?

Ok… How about a test run in 2019? Nope.

Cro Cards coming in January 2020! No, way…

Cro Cards launch on April Fool’s Day, 2020! Nope again!

How about June 1, 2020? Eeehhh…

Ok, July 1. In five days.

The program expanded to include travel agencies, tour operators, private rentals, package deals on accommodations, and charter boats. In other words: the Croatian tourism industry. Restrictions on when the card can be used were also disbanded after it was clear this year’s tourism numbers wouldn’t match 2019’s.

“Despite the problems with the corona crisis, we believe that employers will respond to these cards,” Cappelli said. “Now the crisis will certainly reduce it, but [the Cro Card] is in the government's long-term program, and the benefits are expected in the next few years.”

The Plenković government released a poll suggesting about half of all employers in Croatia had some interest in participating in the Cro Card program.

That was, of course, before the world plunged into a hellish pandemic which has left firms hemorrhaging cash and collapsing faster than honey bee populations in northern Croatia.

Glas Poduzetnika (the Voice of Entrepreneurs Association) released its own poll, showing a vast majority of employers have no intention of handing out Cro Cards (12 percent didn’t even know what the cards were).

Public-sector unions and employees also resoundingly rejected the program.

Croatia’s tourism ministry remains mum on how many businesses have signed up to use the Cro Card program, despite several inquiries by Index.

Hrvatska Poštanska Banka has regardless ordered 40,000 of the cards — about HRK100 million-worth of potential tourism spending.

“It is crazy that anyone will pay a single kuna on that card,” Hrvoje Bujas of the Voice of Entrepreneurs Association said. “It is clear that employees in the private sector will not receive this card. I also find that it is unusable, cannot be used online, and thus prevents online travel agencies in Croatia, which are hit hard by the crisis, from selling hotel rooms.”

Aside from the clear logistical headaches and bizarre arbitrary limitations, there’s perhaps a bigger reason why Croats aren’t adopting the Cro Card program en masse: cash is a bedrock of the tourism industry in Dalmatia.

Croatia infamously twisted itself into odd contortions in 2013, trying to “fiscalize” its economy and eliminate grey market activity by forcing businesses into a nationwide accounting system while also demanding receipts be handed out for every transaction.

Any local tourist who has traveled in Croatia knows the system is a farce, detoured and cleverly ignored by everyone from restaurants to charter companies and hotels.

The Cro Card would immediately add millions of kunas onto the radar of a government starved for more tax revenues during what is sure to be an epic economic downturn. It’ll also widen the base of revenues many businesses already feel are too highly-taxed by the government.

So maybe the Cro Card isn’t seeing mass adoption because Croats want to choose where they'll spend their money.

Or it’s a poorly-designed effort at stimulating economic spending during the worst economic downturn in recent memory.

Or maybe, it’s a sly attempt to shine a light on existing economic spending, while increasing the government's tax revenues

Regardless, the Cro Card’s long history of reanimation after certain death suggests this isn’t the last we’ll see of them.

What exactly should the much talked about Croatian Tourist Card be used for and for whom is it intended at all?

As Novac/Dora Koretic writes on the 29th of May, 2020, until recently, the answer to this question seemed rather simple, but the negotiation process between the state and public service unions, and a Croatian Government team has raised several questions regarding one of the Ministry of Tourism's most promoted and debated projects to date.

This became emphasised after the Minister of Labour Josip Aladrovic appeared before the public on Wednesday and said that instead of paying recourses through the so-called CRO card, the unions agreed that it still needs to be paid in cash, and to the bank account of the user.

"We have taken the position that we will still pay a rebate of 1,500 kuna to the accounts of citizens," he said, adding that the unions weren't satisfied with the idea of ​​the CRO card.

The way the card has now slipped through the collective agreement proposal for state and public services marks a truly considerable departure from the idea of ​​the CRO card in the form in which it was previously presented by its initiators. Namely, the public stated that it was primarily intended for private employers and their employees, and insisted on the interpretation that the payment of money on the Croatian Tourist Card has nothing to do with recourse payments.

Moreover, the whole idea of ​​the Croatian Tourist Card was based on the possibility that employers, in addition to other non-taxable fees in the amount of 7,500 kuna per year, now have the opportunity to pay their employees another 2,500 kuna which is also tax-free, but this time on a special card which will be able to be used in catering, hospitality and tourist facilities across Croatia.

"From January next year, employers, primarily in the private sector, will be able to pay their workers a maximum of 2,500 kuna in the form of a special voucher intended for consumption exclusively within the country and in periods outside of the main season. The project is currently under development, in the initial phase, we'll focus on companies from the private sector, but we're convinced that the state and public administration will also be interested in this,'' said the State Secretary in the Tourism Ministry, Frano Matusic.

Interest in using the Croatian Tourist Card was investigated in cooperation with the Croatian Employers' Association (HUP) on 400 private employers, of which every second one showed interest in the tourist voucher, albeit in the period before the coronavirus pandemic struck.

"The aim of this proposal of the Croatian Government's negotiating committee was to further encourage spending in the sectors which have been the most affected by the coronavirus crisis, such as the tourism and hospitality sector," they explained from the Ministry of Labour, redirecting the card from the private to the public sector. The Ministry of Tourism also briefly responded that the proposal to pay recourses for the civil service through the Croatian Tourist Card was an attempt to encourage spending in the domestic tourism sector.

For more on the Croatian Tourist Card and domestic tourism in the coronavirus era, follow our travel page.

May 3, 2020 - From June 1, CRO cards will be in circulation, where employers will be able to pay their employees 2500 kuna to be used at physical retail outlets of restaurants and accommodation in Croatia, the Ministry of Tourism has revealed.

"The project was approved by the government last year, the process with the banks is now complete, and the cards will be ready for use from the beginning of June. Contracts were signed with seven banks (Agram Bank Zagreb, PBZ, Erste, RBA, OTP, HPB and Podravska). Since this is a card that should control the use of money exclusively in Croatia, those who receive the card can pay with it through the POS devices of these banks. Payment will be possible at points of sale in accommodation and food and beverage service activities. Online use will not be possible," Tourism Ministry spokeswoman Sladjana Vignjevic told Index.

She claims that many interested companies would introduce CRO cards for their employees.

"This amount is non-taxable to employers. According to the survey we conducted, every other employer expressed interest and a lot of big companies want to introduce it, and 63 percent of them prefer the amount of 1000 to 3000 kuna, but we determined it to be 2500 kuna. The card will certainly affect domestic tourism," Vignjevic said.

Already at the end of 2016, the introduction of CRO cards was mentioned to the public, on which employers would pay a certain amount, which would be non-taxable, thus honoring their employees with summer holidays in Croatia. Initially, this was intended to intensify the preseason and postseason, that domestic tourists at that time go to the Adriatic and only then can use this amount from the card. Although it was announced for 2017, the project has not yet started, but on June 1, as stated by the Ministry of Tourism, everything will be ready and citizens will be able to pick up these cards at the mentioned banks.

As the arrival of foreigners to the Adriatic is questionable due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of Tourism wants to encourage local guests to come during the season, not just in the preseason and postseason, as mentioned in previous years.

Hrvoje Bujas from the Voice of Entrepreneurs Association thinks that in the current situation, when companies have fallen and have started cutting salaries and laying off workers, it is unrealistic for employers to provide workers with 2500 kuna for a vacation simultaneously. No matter what, as the Ministry states, it is a non-taxable amount.

"It is crazy that anyone will pay a single kuna on that card. Now, whether the state pays the public sector or its public sector employees certain funds on the card, that is their job. However, it is clear that employees in the private sector will not receive this card. I also find that it is unusable, cannot be used online, and thus prevents online travel agencies in Croatia, which are hit hard by the crisis, from selling hotels in Croatia," Bujas told Index.

He states that he discussed the issue with Tourism Minister Gary Cappelli via video call.

"We pointed to this problem and suggested that it be technically resolved and a module added to allow online use in Croatia. In principle, we have nothing against CRO cards, indeed, if it will help tourism, and some of our members are satisfied, but I'm sure they will not be used in the private sector," Bujas says.

"Plus, as I said, the big problem is that online agencies will not be able to use that card and that in the digital age they are not included in the market, these agencies are put up against a wall. And they are counting on some part, when it will already help hotels and restaurants, and in addition, it would help small renters who go through agencies to guests," Bujas added.

"In the end, it is quite clear that this will only be of service to the public and state sectors," Bujas said.

Veljko Ostojic, director of the Croatian Association of Tourism, believes that any boost in tourism is welcome, including CRO cards, but states that they are timed wrong.

"The question is how many entities will be able to afford this opportunity to use the CRO card in this framework. The timing is not the best. As far as I understand, the one who can give, will, but no spectacle will happen," Ostojic told Index.

He said that he felt that any boost for domestic tourism was welcome.

"I'm not looking at this project as a one-year project, but as a long-term one that will last for many years. The project should be looked at in its entirety. If it doesn't work the first year, ok, we do not need to find defects immediately. I think the project is good, but yes, timing is not the luckiest," Ostojic concluded.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

December 19, 2019 - The Ministry of Tourism has officially introduced the Cro Card as a way to encourage domestic travel. 

HRTurizam writes that in the last 15 years, the number of domestic overnights in Croatia has remained almost unchanged, but due to the steady growth of foreign overnights, the share made by Croatians has dropped to only 7 percent.

By this indicator, Croatia is far below the average of comparable Mediterranean and Central European countries. The total tourist activity of the local population is decreasing, while Croatian destinations show a negative trend of domestic traffic growth.

For these reasons, the Ministry of Tourism wants to encourage domestic travel. One solution is the long-announced Cro Card.

Namely, at Wednesday’s 198th session of the Croatian Government, a measure was introduced to stimulate consumption in the hospitality and tourism sector in Croatia, that is, the Cro Card.

Thus, this measure aims to stabilize the mentioned relative decline in the share of domestic tourist traffic and reverse the trend in the full implementation period.

With this decision, a measure is introduced to stimulate consumption in catering and tourism for Croatian employees in a way that will allow them a more affordable vacation by increasing their remuneration based on work. This regulation introduced the novelty that income tax was not paid on fees for catering, tourist and other services intended for employee vacations up to the amount of HRK 2,500 per year.

So far, the employer has been able to pay HRK 7,500 annually to its workers (for Christmas, recourse, awards, etc.). Now, there is the option of an additional HRK 2,000 through Cro Cards.

This will be paid by a “Croatian Tourist Card", which will be issued by commercial banks, while the commercial bank and the end-user will bear the cost of the card itself. It is also important to emphasize that cash from a Cro Card cannot be withdrawn. 

Cro Cards will be earned through compensation to cover the cost of holiday and catering services that the employer may pay to its employees following income tax regulations. It can be used solely for paying for catering and tourist services provided by legal and natural persons who are eligible for the provision of these services under the special regulations governing the hospitality industry and the provision of tourist services.

The implementation of this measure is expected to have a positive impact on the tourism activity of small and medium-sized enterprises, stimulate growth in supply, and strengthen the potential for tourism and rural development of continental Croatia.

“In the mandate of our Government, we have placed particular emphasis on the development of responsible and sustainable tourism, with particular emphasis on balanced development and the development of the continent. Today, we have adopted the Government Decision on introducing a measure to stimulate spending, which, with the reduction of VAT and regulating the entire legislative framework, makes us extremely pleased because we have made the most important decisions that no one dared to make earlier,” Minister Cappelli said.

The Ministry of Tourism, in cooperation with the Croatian Employers 'Association, surveyed employers to determine their interest in applying in some form of a tourist voucher.

The survey aimed to explore the interest in participating in a potential tourism program under the working name "tourist voucher" without specifying specific tax benefits, investigated the intention to participate in the program for each of the five potential tax benefits individually, and examined the maximum financial value of the voucher employers are willing to pay. The survey results are based on a representative sample of 400 employers.

According to the survey, every other employer expressed a principled interest in the concept presented, while 63% of employers preferred values from HRK 1,000.00 to HRK 3,000.00 per employee per year, and as the most important advantage, most employers spoke positively about a tourist voucher as an employee reward model.

The introduction of this measure is based on examples of good practice in EU countries. For example, Hungary, Italy and France, which by implementing a similar measure, have produced respectable results in increasing domestic tourist traffic.

The Cro Card is based on the Hungarian model, the "Szep Card". By implementing the Szep Card from 2010-2015, the number of overnight stays of domestic tourists increased in Hungary by 29 percent, while the total revenue of domestic tourism increased by 64 percent, with the Szep Card having a decisive role. So far, 26,500 companies have used the Szep Card for nearly 1.3 million employed citizens.

Furthermore, for two years (2010-2012), Italy had measures in place to subsidize domestic traffic. The measures were based on the family income bracket and issuing vouchers that could have been used for local vacations. France, on the other hand, subsidizes French tourism by employers through the Comite d'entreprise (CE). Up to 3 domestic trips are subsidized annually (and only one foreign trip).

The critical effects of introducing the measure are reflected, among other things, by the estimated potential of generating direct net income of approximately HRK 1 billion annually in the stabilized year of project implementation, estimated impact on new investments in the sector amounting to HRK 4 billion in the entire implementation period, and total tourism consumption of about 14.3 billion euro in 2020, of which about 1.8 billion euro domestic, the Ministry of Tourism expects.

This Decision shall come into force on the first day following its publication in the Narodne novine. For now, there are still some open questions regarding its implementation, which we will find out in the coming days.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

The fourth round of the tax reform by Finance Minister Zdravko Marić has officially revealed that the long-awaited Cro card will finally come to fruition, starting January 1, when other tax news should come into effect. 

Tourism Minister Gari Cappelli also confirmed the news, announcing that from January next year, employers will be able to "pay" a maximum of 2,500 kuna to workers by a special voucher, intended for consumption exclusively within Croatia and in periods outside the peak season, reports Splitski Dnevnik on July 30, 2019.

"That's right, the 'Cro Card', which will go through a public consultation with the complete tax reform, should begin in January, and we are particularly pleased with its purpose to encourage spending in the offseason, between October and April, and to stimulate consumption on the continent, although no offer on the coast will be excluded from it,” Minister Cappelli announced.

And it will work as follows: Employers will be able to pay a maximum of 7,500 kuna tax-free per worker annually, for Christmas, annual leave, bonuses and other benefits, and the tax reform will now allow up to 2,500 kuna of that amount to be paid to workers through the 'Cro card' voucher. 

In order to avoid confusion, Cappelli explained that the Cro card would not actually be in the form of a plastic card, but would probably be resolved in the form of a paper voucher, a document that each employee would be able to print out through their personal account and then use in businesses across the country.

More specifically, the voucher can’t be used in all businesses, but only those who will be included in this special program. Thus, there will very likely be unique labels on the doors of businesses so that citizens can know who is participating in this payment method.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

The Ministry of Tourism has launched a number of new projects for 2017 - including changes to tourist laws - expecting that this year will bring positive trends in tourism.