Vehicle registration plates of Brazil

Brazil vehicle license plates

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Brazilian vehicle license plate for a private-use vehicle registered in Rio de Janeiro, RJ. Mercosur-style plates were introduced in September 2018. Colour schemes denoting functions used in Brazilian license plates, current style Colour schemes denoting functions used in Brazilian license plates in the style that lasted from 1990 to 2018

Brazilian vehicle registration plates are issued by the states. Each state has a Departamento de Trânsito (DETRAN) that is in charge of vehicle registration and car tax collection, but plates are standardized across the country and form a national vehicle registration database.

## Description

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The current system, being phased out in favor of Mercosul standard plates, was created in 1990 and was named Registro Nacional de Veículos Automotores (RENAVAM). It uses the form "LLL·NNNN", where LLL is a three-letter combination followed by a four-digit number with a dot between the letters and numbers. A combination given to one vehicle stays with it "for life" - it cannot be changed or transferred to another vehicle. Vanity plates are allowed as long as they abide by the same standard as non-vanity plates.

Above the combination is a metallic band with the standardized state abbreviation and the name of the municipality in which the vehicle is currently registered. This band has to be changed when a vehicle needs to be registered in a different municipality. Rear number plates are bound to the vehicle by a plastic seal. Broken seals invalidate the number plate, which has to be re-sealed by the authorities. Seals need to be broken in order to change State/Municipality tags.

The size of the Brazilian license plates has been standardized to 400 × 130 mm (15" × 5" approx.) in 2008. That standardization also requires a unique typeface known as "Mandatory", which is similar to the typeface used on British plates introduced there in 2001. Plates in North American standard or European standard size can no longer be used as of 1 January 2008.

## Colors

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### Mercosur license plates (2018–)

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* Black on white: privately owned vehicles;
* Red on white: any kind of paid transportation (buses, taxis, trucks, etc.) and driving schools (autoescola in Portuguese);
* Blue on white: official use (government-owned cars: police departments, fire departments, federal, state or city public services);
* Grey on white: collector's items (vehicles older than 30 years in excellent state of conservation and in original state - with more than 80% of its original components), unrestricted circulation inside and outside Brazil;
* White on black: same as above, but without Mercosur's logo and with circulation restricted inside Brazil;
* Green on white: manufacturer plates for vehicles under testing, dealer-testing, or in some cases test-drive (in most cases test-drive cars are registered to the dealership and thus use regular black on white plates; privately owned cars being tested after repairs usually carry dealer-fitted green plates over their black on white plates);
* Gold on white: diplomatic use.

### Old system (1990–2018)

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* Black on grey: privately owned vehicles;
* White on red: any kind of paid transportation (buses, taxis etc.);
* Red on white: driving school (autoescola in Portuguese);
* Black on white: official use (government-owned cars: police departments, fire departments, federal, state or city public services);
* Gray on black: collector's items (vehicles older than 30 years in excellent state of conservation and in original state - with more than 80% of its original components);
* White on green: manufacturer plates for vehicles under testing, dealer-testing, or in some cases test-drive (in most cases test-drive cars are registered to the dealership and thus use black on grey plates; privately owned cars being tested after repairs usually carry dealer-fitted green plates over their black on grey plates);
* White on blue: diplomatic use (in this case in the format CD 1234 or CC 1234) or newer licenses like EMB 1234).

* The first Brazilian license plate was issued in 1901. The early model of the plates was used until 1913

* Brazilian license plate used between 1915 and 1941, always beginning with the letter P (private) or A (cabs, trucks and buses)

* License plate model used in Brazil between 1941 and 1970. The "Distrito Federal" tag was used in Rio de Janeiro city until 1960, when Brasília became the country's capital and federal district

* Cab - truck - bus license plate used in Brazil between 1941 and 1970. The name "Guanabara" began to be used in Rio de Janeiro city in 1960, referring to the city-state where it belonged until 1975, when it was merged with state of Rio de Janeiro and became its capital

* Private license plate model used in Rio de Janeiro city, Brazil, between 1941 and 1970. The name "Guanabara" began to be used in Rio de Janeiro city in 1960

* Brazilian yellow alphanumeric plate used in private cars between 1971 and 1990

* Brazilian license plate used from 1990 until the exchange for Mercosur plates

## Letters

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Rear plate from Pernambuco Front license plate of a truck from Pernambuco

The letters on the license plate can describe the state where a vehicle was originally registered. Vehicles relocated from one state to another will show the new state/municipality on the replaceable tag, but it is always possible to determine the place of original registration for a used vehicle by observing the license plate range for each Brazilian State:

State | 1st sequence | 2nd sequence | 3rd sequence | 4th sequence | 5th sequence | 6th sequence | 7th sequence | 8th sequence | 9th sequence | 10th sequence | 11th sequence | 12th sequence | 13th sequence | 14th sequence | 15th sequence | 16th sequence

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Paraná (PR) | AAA to BEZ | RHA to RHZ | SDP to SFO | TAI to TBZ |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
São Paulo (SP) | BFA to GKI | QSN to QSZ | SSR to SWZ | TIO to TMJ |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Minas Gerais (MG) | GKJ to HOK | NXX to NYG | OLO to OMH | OOV to ORC | OWH to OXK | PUA to PZZ | QMQ to QQZ | QUA to QUZ | QWR to QXZ | RFA to RGD | RMD to RNZ | RTA to RVZ | SHB to SJI | SYA to SYZ | UAI | TCA to

TEZ

Maranhão (MA) | HOL to HQE | NHA to NHT | NMP to NNI | NWS to NXQ | OIR to OJQ | OXQ to OXZ | PSA to PTZ | ROA to ROZ | SMM to SNJ |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Mato Grosso do Sul (MS) | HQF to HTW | NRF to NSD | OOG to OOU | QAA to QAZ | REW to REZ | RWA to RWJ | SLW to SML |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Ceará (CE) | HTX to HZA | NQL to NRE | NUM to NVF | OCB to OCU | OHX to OIQ | ORN to OSV | OZA | PMA to POZ | RIA to RIL | SAN to SBV | THN to TIN |  |  |  |  |
Sergipe (SE) | HZB to IAP | NVG to NVN | OEJ to OES | OZB | QKN to QKZ | QMA to QMP | RQW to RRH | TNU to TOD |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Rio Grande do Sul (RS) | IAQ to JDO | TQO to TRW |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Distrito Federal (DF) | JDP to JKR | OVM to OVV | OZW to PBZ | REC to REV | SGN to SGZ | SSF to SSQ | TUY to TUZ | TVK |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Bahia (BA) | JKS to JSZ | NTD to NTW | NYH to NZZ | OKI to OLG | OUF to OVD | OZC to OZV | PJA to PLZ | QTU to QTZ | RCO to RDR | RPA to RPZ | SJJ to SKT | TGR to THH |  |  |  |
Pará (PA) | JTA to JWE | NSE to NTC | OBT to OCA | OFI to OFW | OSW to OTZ | QDA to QEZ | QVA to QVZ | RWK to RXJ | SZA to SZZ | TVL to TWK |  |  |  |  |  |
Amazonas (AM) | JWF to JXY | NOI to NPB | OAA to OAO | OXM | PHA to PHZ | QZA to QZZ | TAA to TAH | TRX to TSO |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Mato Grosso (MT) | JXZ to KAU | NIY to NJW | NPC to NPQ | NTX to NUG | OAP to OBS | QBA to QCZ | RAK to RAZ | RRI to RRZ | SPC to SQP |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Goiás (GO) | KAV to KFC | NFC to NGZ | NJX to NLU | NVO to NWR | OGH to OHA | OMI to OOF | PQA to PRZ | QTN to QTS | RBK to RCN | SBW to SDO | TFA to TGN |  |  |  |  |
Pernambuco (PE) | KFD to KME | NXU to NXW | PEE to PFQ | PFR to PGK | PGL to PGU | OYL to OYZ | PCA to PED | PGV to PGZ | QYA to QYZ | RZE to RZZ | SNK to SPB |  |  |  |  |
Rio de Janeiro (RJ) | KMF to LVE | RIO to RKV | SQV to SSE | TTA to TUX |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Piauí (PI) | LVF to LWQ | NHU to NIX | ODU to OEI | OUA to OUE | OVW to OVY | PIA to PIZ | QRN to QRZ | RSG to RST | SLM to SLV |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Santa Catarina (SC) | LWR to MMM | OKD to OKH | QHA to QJZ | QTK to QTM | RAA to RAJ | RDS to REB | RKW to RLP | RXK to RYZ | SXA to SXZ | TPI to TPZ |  |  |  |  |  |
Paraíba (PB) | MMN to MOW | NPR to NQK | OET to OFH | OFX to OGG | OXO | QFA to QFZ | QSA to QSM | RLQ to RMC | SKU to SLF | TOT to TPH |  |  |  |  |  |
Espírito Santo (ES) | MOX to MTZ | OCV to ODT | OVE to OVF | OVH to OVL | OYD to OYK | PPA to PPZ | QRB to QRM | RBA to RBJ | RQM to RQV | SFP to SGM | TOE to TOS |  |  |  |  |
Alagoas (AL) | MUA to MVK | NLV to NMO | OHB to OHK | ORD to ORM | OXN | QLA to QLM | QTT | QWG to QWL | RGO to RGU | SAA to SAJ | TNH to TNT |  |  |  |  |
Tocantins (TO) | MVL to MXG | OLH to OLN | OYA to OYC | QKA to QKM | QWA to QWF | RSA to RSF | RIM to RIN | RMA to RMC | TVA |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Rio Grande do Norte (RN) | MXH to MZM | NNJ to NOH | OJR to OKC | OVZ to OWG | QGA to QGZ | RGE to RGN | RQA to RQL | TSP to TSZ |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Acre (AC) | MZM to NAG | NXR to NXT | OVG | OXP | QLU to QLZ | QWM to QWQ | SHA | SQQ to SQU |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Roraima (RR) | NAH to NBA | NUH to NUL | RZA to RZD |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Rondônia (RO) | NBB to NEH | OHL to OHW | OXL | QRA | QTA to QTJ | RSU to RSZ | SLG to SLL | THI to THM |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Amapá (AP) | NEI to NFB | QLN to QLT | SAK to SAM | TGO to TGQ |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

Below is an alphabetically organized list of Letter Sequences and corresponding States. This list is up to date as of June 2025.

Alphabetically organized list of Letter Sequences and corresponding States

Letter Sequence  | State
AAA to BEZ |  Paraná (PR)
BFA to GKI |  São Paulo (SP)
GKJ to HOK |  Minas Gerais (MG)
HOL to HQE |  Maranhão (MA)
HQF to HTW |  Mato Grosso do Sul (MS)
HTX to HZA |  Ceará (CE)
HZB to IAP |  Sergipe (SE)
IAQ to JDO |  Rio Grande do Sul (RS)
JDP to JKR |  Distrito Federal (DF)
JKS to JSZ |  Bahia (BA)
JTA to JWE |  Pará (PA)
JWF to JXY |  Amazonas (AM)
JXZ to KAU |  Mato Grosso (MT)
KAV to KFC |  Goiás (GO)
KFD to KME |  Pernambuco (PE)
KMF to LVE |  Rio de Janeiro (RJ)
LVF to LWQ |  Piauí (PI)
LWR to MMM |  Santa Catarina (SC)
MMN to MOW |  Paraíba (PB)
MOX to MTZ |  Espírito Santo (ES)
MUA to MVK |  Alagoas (AL)
MVL to MXG |  Tocantins (TO)
MXH to MZM |  Rio Grande do Norte (RN)
MZM to NAG |  Acre (AC)
NAH to NBA |  Roraima (RR)
NBB to NEH |  Rondônia (RO)
NEI to NFB |  Amapá (AP)
NFC to NGZ |  Goiás (GO)
NHA to NHT |  Maranhão (MA)
NHU to NIX |  Piauí (PI)
NIY to NJW |  Mato Grosso (MT)
NJX to NLU |  Goiás (GO)
NLV to NMO |  Alagoas (AL)
NMP to NNI |  Maranhão (MA)
NNJ to NOH |  Rio Grande do Norte (RN)
NOI to NPB |  Amazonas (AM)
NPC to NPQ |  Mato Grosso (MT)
NPR to NQK |  Paraíba (PB)
NQL to NRE |  Ceará (CE)
NRF to NSD |  Mato Grosso do Sul (MS)
NSE to NTC |  Pará (PA)
NTD to NTW |  Bahia (BA)
NTX to NUG |  Mato Grosso (MT)
NUH to NUL |  Roraima (RR)
NUM to NVF |  Ceará (CE)
NVG to NVN |  Sergipe (SE)
NVO to NWR |  Goiás (GO)
NWS to NXQ |  Maranhão (MA)
NXR to NXT |  Acre (AC)
NXU to NXW |  Pernambuco (PE)
NXX to NYG |  Minas Gerais (MG)
NYH to NZZ |  Bahia (BA)
OAA to OAO |  Amazonas (AM)
OAP to OBS |  Mato Grosso (MT)
OBT to OCA |  Pará (PA)
OCB to OCU |  Ceará (CE)
OCV to ODT |  Espírito Santo (ES)
ODU to OEI |  Piauí (PI)
OEJ to OES |  Sergipe (SE)
OET to OFH |  Paraíba (PB)
OFI to OFW |  Pará (PA)
OFX to OGG |  Paraíba (PB)
OGH to OHA |  Goiás (GO)
OHB to OHK |  Alagoas (AL)
OHL to OHW |  Rondônia (RO)
OHX to OIQ |  Ceará (CE)
OIR to OJQ |  Maranhão (MA)
OJR to OKC |  Rio Grande do Norte (RN)
OKD to OKH |  Santa Catarina (SC)
OKI to OLG |  Bahia (BA)
OLH to OLN |  Tocantins (TO)
OLO to OMH |  Minas Gerais (MG)
OMI to OOF |  Goiás (GO)
OOG to OOU |  Mato Grosso do Sul (MS)
OOV to ORC |  Minas Gerais (MG)
ORD to ORM |  Alagoas (AL)
ORN to OSV |  Ceará (CE)
OSW to OTZ |  Pará (PA)
OUA to OUE |  Piauí (PI)
OUF to OVD |  Bahia (BA)
OVE to OVF |  Espírito Santo (ES)
OVG |  Acre (AC)
OVH to OVL |  Espírito Santo (ES)
OVM to OVV |  Distrito Federal (DF)
OVW to OVY |  Piauí (PI)
OVZ to OWG |  Rio Grande do Norte (RN)
OWH to OXK |  Minas Gerais (MG)
OXL |  Rondônia (RO)
OXM |  Amazonas (AM)
OXN |  Alagoas (AL)
OXO |  Paraíba (PB)
OXP |  Acre (AC)
OXQ to OXZ |  Maranhão (MA)
OYA to OYC |  Tocantins (TO)
OYD to OYK |  Espírito Santo (ES)
OYL to OYZ |  Pernambuco (PE)
OZA |  Ceará (CE)
OZB |  Sergipe (SE)
OZC to OZV |  Bahia (BA)
OZW to PBZ |  Distrito Federal (DF)
PCA to PGZ |  Pernambuco (PE)
PHA to PHZ |  Amazonas (AM)
PIA to PIZ |  Piauí (PI)
PJA to PLZ |  Bahia (BA)
PMA to POZ |  Ceará (CE)
PPA to PPZ |  Espírito Santo (ES)
PQA to PRZ |  Goiás (GO)
PSA to PTZ |  Maranhão (MA)
PUA to PZZ |  Minas Gerais (MG)
QAA to QAZ |  Mato Grosso do Sul (MS)
QBA to QCZ |  Mato Grosso (MT)
QDA to QEZ |  Pará (PA)
QFA to QFZ |  Paraíba (PB)
QGA to QGZ |  Rio Grande do Norte (RN)
QHA to QJZ |  Santa Catarina (SC)
QKA to QKM |  Tocantins (TO)
QKN to QKZ |  Sergipe (SE)
QLA to QLM |  Alagoas (AL)
QLN to QLT |  Amapá (AP)
QLU to QLZ |  Acre (AC)
QMA to QMP |  Sergipe (SE)
QMQ to QQZ |  Minas Gerais (MG)
QRA |  Rondônia (RO)
QRB to QRM |  Espírito Santo (ES)
QRN to QRZ |  Piauí (PI)
QSA to QSM |  Paraíba (PB)
QSN to QSZ |  São Paulo (SP)
QTA to QTJ |  Rondônia (RO)
QTK to QTM |  Santa Catarina (SC)
QTN to QTS |  Goiás (GO)
QTT |  Alagoas (AL)
QTU to QTZ |  Bahia (BA)
QUA to QUZ |  Minas Gerais (MG)
QVA to QVZ |  Pará (PA)
QWA to QWF |  Tocantins (TO)
QWG to QWL |  Alagoas (AL)
QWM to QWQ |  Acre (AC)
QWR to QXZ |  Minas Gerais (MG)
QYA to QYZ |  Pernambuco (PE)
QZA to QZZ |  Amazonas (AM)
RAA to RAJ |  Santa Catarina (SC)
RAK to RAZ |  Mato Grosso (MT)
RBA to RBJ |  Espírito Santo (ES)
RBK to RCN |  Goiás (GO)
RCO to RDR |  Bahia (BA)
RDS to REB |  Santa Catarina (SC)
REC to REV |  Distrito Federal (DF)
REW to REZ |  Mato Grosso do Sul (MS)
RFA to RGD |  Minas Gerais (MG)
RGE to RGN |  Rio Grande do Norte (RN)
RGO to RGZ |  Alagoas (AL)
RHA to RHZ |  Paraná (PR)
RIA to RIL |  Ceará (CE)
RIM to RIN |  Tocantins (TO)
RIO to RKV |  Rio de Janeiro (RJ)
RKW to RLP |  Santa Catarina (SC)
RLQ to RLZ |  Paraíba (PB)
RMA to RMC |  Tocantins (TO)
RMD to RNZ |  Minas Gerais (MG)
ROA to ROZ |  Maranhão (MA)
RPA to RPZ |  Bahia (BA)
RQA to RQL |  Rio Grande do Norte (RN)
RQM to RQV |  Espírito Santo (ES)
RQW to RRH |  Sergipe (SE)
RRI to RRZ |  Mato Grosso (MT)
RSA to RSF |  Tocantins (TO)
RSG to RST |  Piauí (PI)
RSU to RSZ |  Rondônia (RO)
RTA to RVZ |  Minas Gerais (MG)
RWA to RWJ |  Mato Grosso do Sul (MS)
RWK to RXJ |  Pará (PA)
RXK to RYZ |  Santa Catarina (SC)
RZA to RZD |  Roraima (RR)
RZE to RZZ |  Pernambuco (PE)
SAA to SAJ |  Alagoas (AL)
SAK to SAM |  Amapá (AP)
SAN to SBV |  Ceará (CE)
SBW to SDO |  Goiás (GO)
SDP to SFO |  Paraná (PR)
SFP to SGM |  Espírito Santo (ES)
SGN to SGZ |  Distrito Federal (DF)
SHA |  Acre (AC)
SHB to SJI |  Minas Gerais (MG)
SJJ to SKT |  Bahia (BA)
SKU to SLF |  Paraíba (PB)
SLG to SLL |  Rondônia (RO)
SLM to SLV |  Piauí (PI)
SLW to SML |  Mato Grosso do Sul (MS)
SMM to SNJ |  Maranhão (MA)
SNK to SPB |  Pernambuco (PE)
SPC to SQP |  Mato Grosso (MT)
SQQ to SQU |  Acre (AC)
SQV to SSE |  Rio de Janeiro (RJ)
SSF to SSQ |  Distrito Federal (DF)
SSR to SWZ |  São Paulo (SP)
SXA to SXZ |  Santa Catarina (SC)
SYA to SYZ |  Minas Gerais (MG)
SZA to SZZ |  Pará (PA)
TAA to TAH |  Amazonas (AM)
TAI to TBZ |  Paraná (PR)
TCA to TEZ |  Minas Gerais (MG)
TFA to TGN |  Goiás (GO)
TGO to TGQ |  Amapá (AP)
TGR to THH |  Bahia (BA)
THI to THM |  Rondônia (RO)
THN to TIN |  Ceará (CE)
TIO to TMJ |  São Paulo (SP)
TMK to TNG | Letter Sequence not allocated yet
TNH to TNT |  Alagoas (AL)
TNU to TOD |  Sergipe (SE)
TOE to TOS |  Espírito Santo (ES)
TOT to TPH |  Paraíba (PB)
TPI to TPZ |  Santa Catarina (SC)
TQA to TQN | Letter Sequence not allocated yet
TQO to TRW |  Rio Grande do Sul (RS)
TRX to TSO |  Amazonas (AM)
TSP to TSZ |  Rio Grande do Norte (RN)
TTA to TUX |  Rio de Janeiro (RJ)
TUY to TUZ |  Distrito Federal (DF)
TVA |  Tocantins (TO)
TVB to TVJ | Letter Sequence not allocated yet
TVK |  Distrito Federal (DF)
TVL to TWK |  Pará (PA)
TWL to UAH | Letter Sequence not allocated yet
UAI |  Minas Gerais (MG)
UAJ to ZZZ | Letter Sequence not allocated yet

## 2018 Mercosur standard

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Pre-production sample of Brazil's Mercosur license plate. Note that the actual implemented alphanumeric format is different from the one shown above: it is LLLNLNN and not LNLNLLN, as seen here)

In October 2014 the design of the new license plate to be used by all Mercosul countries was officially presented. This consists of a plate of 15.75 in × 5.12 in (400.05 mm × 130.05 mm), with a white background, the characters and frame in black and a blue band at the top that shows the name of the country, its flag and the Mercosul logo. The typeface used is FE-Schrift.

In September, 2018, Mercosul standard license plates started to be adopted in Rio de Janeiro. As of January 2020, all states have started issuing the new plates. By the end of 2023, all vehicles are expected to be carrying these new plates.[1]

The Mercosul license plates have a new alphanumeric format that will allow for more available combinations. While the previous system used a LLL-#### format, the new format is LLL#L##. Vehicles who are to switch their old license plates for the new one will retain their previous license plate number, with the exception of the 2nd digit (5th character). The number in that position of the alphanumberic format is being replaced by a letter, in accordance with the below table.

Corresponding 5th Characters in the previous and current Brazilian Plates  2nd Digit in the previous plate Design
(`ABC·1234` Format)  | 4th Letter in the Mercosul Format
(`ABC1D23` Format)

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`0` | `A`
`1` | `B`
`2` | `C`
`3` | `D`
`4` | `E`
`5` | `F`
`6` | `G`
`7` | `H`
`8` | `I`
`9` | `J`

## References

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1. ^ "Placas do Mercosul começam a valer em 1º de setembro no Brasil". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 8 March 2018. Retrieved 2021-02-15.

* v
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Vehicle registration plates of South America

Sovereign states|

* Argentina
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Chile
* Colombia
* Ecuador
* Guyana
* Paraguay
* Peru
* Suriname
* Uruguay
* Venezuela

Dependencies and
other territories

* Falkland Islands
* French Guiana
* South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

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