diff --git a/.gitlab-ci.yml b/.gitlab-ci.yml
index 94ca4d4d59c22c3e1ecb172114370ef9a30e647c..3aea0e42aae024e1f3336d280c457a7fbc11682b 100644
--- a/.gitlab-ci.yml
+++ b/.gitlab-ci.yml
@@ -7,8 +7,6 @@ include:
   - project: biosignal/software/dev-profile
     file: /gitlab/python.yml
 
-tests:
-  before_script:
-    - git submodule sync
-    - git submodule update --init
-    - !reference [.snippets, test-prepare]
+variables:
+  GIT_SUBMODULE_STRATEGY: normal
+  GIT_SUBMODULE_DEPTH: 1