Today is the last day song submissions are open for the Croatian and Maltese selections for the Eurovision Song Contest 2026.
ðŸ‡ðŸ‡· Croatia – Dora 2026 – Song Submissions Close
Today is the last day for songs to be submitted to compete in Dora 2026, the Croatian selection for the Eurovision Song Contest.
Two months after song submissions opened, today is the last day entries are being accepted by HRT for Dora 2026. The selection rules are as follows:
Songs must be original and must not exceed three minutes in length.
Songs must not have been publicly released or performed before the contest.
Performers must be at least 16 years old.
Performers must be Croatian citizens.
Autotune is not allowed during live performances.
Up to six performers may be on stage per performance.
Any selected artists must submit music or lyric videos of their entries to HRT by January 5, 2026.
Once the submission window closes, an expert jury will select 24 songs to compete in Dora 2026, as well as four reserve songs in case any song is withdrawn. Dora 2026 will take place in February 2026 in Zagreb. The winner will represent Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 in Vienna.
This will be the first time that Croatia will participate in a Eurovision Song Contest held in Austria as an independent nation. Croatia competed as part of Yugoslavia in 1967 and they did not participate at all in 2015.
🇲🇹 Malta – Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2026 – Song Submissions Close
Miriana Conte rehearsing SERVING for Malta at St. Jakobshalle | Image source: Sarah Louise Bennett / EBU
Song submissions close today for the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2026. Song submissions opened for the Maltese selection at the start of this week and close today after being open for seven days. The rules of the selection are:
Singers must be 16 by May 1, 2026
For soloists, the lead vocals must be Maltese or a resident of Malta for the past 24 months
For groups or duets, at least 50% of the lead vocals must meet the same criteria as above
At least one lyricist or composer per song must hold Maltese nationality or be a dual national who also holds Maltese citizenship
Singer may submit as many songs into the selection as they wish. Should they be chosen for MESC 2026, only the song that received the highest jury score in the initial assessment will progress to the live shows.
Songs may have previously been submitted to other competitions; however, they cannot have progressed past the first round. They also cannot have been released commercially before submission or have any public postings or teasers available.
Songs can be submitted at Eurovision.mt.
On December 1, the broadcaster will announce the 18 semi-finalists who will take part in the semi-final. Through the votes of the jury and of the public, 12 finalists will be chosen to advance to the final evening on January 17. The winner(s) will then represent Malta at the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna next May.
Image Source: Sarah Louise Bennett/ EBU
