diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index 02aa8bd..eae2db3 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -23,6 +23,9 @@ S3_BUCKET=crussell
 S3_PROFILE_PICS_BUCKET=crussell-profile-pics
 AWS_REGION=eu-west-2
 
+# Set DAV_SKIP_INIT=1 to skip CardDAV server initialization (e.g., in CI/test environments).
+DAV_SKIP_INIT=1
+
 # Prod only: Cloudflare R2 (overrides S3_* vars in non-dev builds).
 # Local dev uses the S3_* vars above (from .env). Not needed for local builds.
 R2_ENDPOINT=