Frequently Asked Questions

“Release date” for CARAS eligibility purposes is defined as the date of first online transaction or stream. Product must be released for national sale* (in stores or online for all Canadians to access) or via a recognized national music streaming provider**. The first available consumer access will be the release date for JUNO Award eligibility purposes. Product released (digital or physical) only internationally (not in Canada) outside of the eligibility period, may be eligible as long as Canadian release date falls within eligibility period.

*Product must be released nationally via brick and mortar stores or third-party online retailers.

**Product must be released via a nationally accessible streaming service that has paid subscriptions, full catalogue, or on-demand streaming. Eligible streaming services are Canadian versions of Amazon Music, Apple Music, Google Play Music, Napster, Slacker, Soundcloud PRO, Spotify, Tidal.

Albums available for pre-order online no later than November 8, 2019 will qualify, as long as they are available no later than November 22, 2019. Proof of transaction may be requested. Product must be released for national sale (in stores or online for all Canadians to access). Product released (digital or physical) only internationally (not in Canada) outside of the eligibility period, may be eligible as long as the Canadian release date falls within the eligibility period.

PLEASE NOTE: All online submissions must be complete by 11:59PM EST on the November 8 deadline day.  The 12 physical copies of the album/vinyl/DVD required for Album Artwork of the Year must be received in the CARAS office by November 8 at 5PM EST however if you submit by the early bird deadline your product must be in the office by October 18 at 5PM EST

Once you have completed your online application at junosubmissions.ca, you will receive an email confirmation.

Submissions must be completed online by 11:59pm EST on November 8, 2019, In order to qualify for the early bird deadline, your online submission must be complete by October 18, 2019 – including: all necessary uploaded documents and product, as well as payment. The 12 physical copies of the product required for Album Artwork of the Year must be received in the CARAS office by November 8, 2019 by 5pm EST, however if you submit by the early bird deadline your product must be in the office by 5pm EST on October 18.

Yes. Once all fields are entered properly during the submission process you will be prompted to a screen which will allow you to pay online with VISA, MasterCard or AMEX.

No. Applications must be completed and submitted online via the website (www.junosubmissions.ca), including uploading your music.

Exception: If you submitted to Album Artwork of the Year, you will complete the online submission process and mail 12 copies of your product to the CARAS office by the November 8, 2019 deadline day. However, if you submit by the early bird deadline your product must be in the CARAS office by October 18, 2019 at 5pm EST in order to qualify for early bird pricing.

The only category where a non-Canadian is eligible is the International Album of the Year category.

For all other categories, a Canadian is defined as:

1. 50% or more of group members hold Canadian birth certificates, passports or are Canadian Permanent Resident(s) with residency in Canada during the last six months of the eligibility period;

OR

2. The group is deemed by CARAS, in its sole discretion, to be Canadian as a result of:

• the Canadian member(s) receiving the majority of royalties, touring profits and other proceeds earned by the group; and
• the Canadian member(s) being the creative force behind the group and/or the principal songwriters for the group.

CARAS shall have sole discretion in applying the criteria above and determining whether the artist/group is Canadian.

Non-genre category: categories that are not tied to one genre. These categories are: Artist of the Year (5), Group of the Year (6), Breakthrough Artist of the Year (7) and Breakthrough Group of the Year (8).

Technical category: categories that are not tied to a specific genre and have a technical component. These categories are: Songwriter (9), Classical Composition (24), Producer (35), Recording Engineer (36), Album Artwork (37), and Video (38).

Crossover category: a category that will fit into a type of music based on lyrical reflection but may also fit into a different category based on musical sound. These categories are: Francophone (19), Indigenous Artist or Group (29) and Contemporary Christian/Gospel (33).

Genre category: a category that is a specific genre such as Rock, Pop, Jazz, Classical, etc.

• You may only make one submission in any of the genre categories (10-18, 20-23, 25-28, 30-32, 34 and 40-43).
• You may make submissions in all the crossover categories if eligible (19, 29, 33)
• You may only make one submission in categories 5-8.
• You may make submissions in all the remaining categories if eligible (3-4, 9, 24, and 35-38).

No, you may not re-submit an album/recording if it has been previously nominated in the same category.

Exception: An Artist/Group may be nominated for a performance category – ALBUM/ARTIST/GROUP/BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST/BREAKTHROUGH GROUP OF THE YEAR and resubmit the same material the following year for a genre/craft category such as COUNTRY ALBUM OF THE YEAR (provided the material still falls within the eligibility period).

Albums containing previously released songs may qualify if a minimum of 50% of the album’s songs are considered to be “new.”   To be considered “new,” a song must be completely re-recorded (CARAS may require proof of the recording). Adding to existing instrumental or vocal tracks, or replacing instruments or vocals does not qualify as “new.”

This criteria may not apply to Breakthrough Artist and Breakthrough Group of the Year as previously released tracks may be eligible at CARAS’ discretion. 

Live recordings or stripped-down versions of previously released songs are NOT eligible.

Albums that have been previously released and then re-released in a different language with the same musical arrangement do not qualify.

“Greatest Hits” packages are not eligible. Greatest hits packages are defined as albums containing over 50% of previously released cuts. Live albums are eligible only if 50% or greater of the cuts are new (not previously released or newly arranged).  

You may submit a manufacturing invoice, a letter from the distributor or record company, or a contract showing Internet point of sale.

A full album is defined as having a minimum run time of 20:00+ unique minutes or six unique tracks (meaning no remixes, acoustic, instrumental versions, added accompaniment etc).  In order to submit to a category with “Album of the Year” in the title, this criteria must be met.

Covers of songs by other artists are eligible – provided the artist who is submitting has not recorded the songs previously and released them for national consumption.

Yes, there are no restrictions on album/recordings being in English only.

If an album released in a different language is nominated, it cannot be nominated again if released in English.  Change of language still constitutes the same material and therefore it would be considered to be previously released and not eligible.  The same rule applies to removing a vocal track or adding a vocal track to previously released material.

• International Album of the Year
• Album of the Year
• Artist of the Year
• Group of the Year
• Breakthrough Artist of the Year
• Breakthrough Group of the Year
• Pop Album of the Year
• Rock Album of the Year
• Francophone Album of the Year
• Rap Recording of the Year

The sales portion will be calculated by combining physical scanned sales, which includes digital sales with digital only sales.
Sales are captured from September 1, 2018 to year end 2019.

The total of all scanned track sales during the eligibility period will be generated.  All songs that comprise the album and all remixes or alternate versions of those songs are eligible for inclusion in the digital tracks computation.

• There are no minimum sales requirements for any sales related categories.
• Sales captured include digital albums, digital tracks, DVDs and offstage sales.