diff --git a/app/Actions/Citation/SyncCitations.php b/app/Actions/Citation/SyncCitations.php
index f33a96eb..5ba82c26 100644
--- a/app/Actions/Citation/SyncCitations.php
+++ b/app/Actions/Citation/SyncCitations.php
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 use App\Models\User;
 use Illuminate\Support\Facades\DB;
 use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Validator;
+use Illuminate\Support\Str;
 
 class SyncCitations
 {
@@ -73,7 +74,7 @@ private function findOrCreateCitation(Project $project, array $citationData): Ci
     {
         $doi = $this->normalizeDoi($citationData['doi'] ?? null);
         $title = $this->normalizeText($citationData['title'] ?? null);
-        $authors = $this->normalizeText($citationData['authors'] ?? null);
+        $titleSlug = $this->normalizeTitleSlug($citationData['title'] ?? null);
 
         $existingCitation = null;
 
@@ -87,11 +88,12 @@ private function findOrCreateCitation(Project $project, array $citationData): Ci
             $existingCitation = $project->citations->firstWhere('doi', $doi);
         }
 
-        // 3. Try to match by title + authors (content-based matching for missing DOI)
-        if (! $existingCitation && ! is_null($title) && ! is_null($authors)) {
-            $existingCitation = $project->citations->first(function ($citation) use ($title, $authors): bool {
-                return $this->normalizeText($citation->title) === $title
-                    && $this->normalizeText($citation->authors) === $authors;
+        // 3. Try to match by title slug (content-based matching for missing DOI)
+        if (! $existingCitation && ! is_null($titleSlug)) {
+            $existingCitation = $project->citations->first(function ($citation) use ($titleSlug): bool {
+                $citationSlug = $this->normalizeTitleSlug($citation->title_slug ?? $citation->title);
+
+                return $citationSlug === $titleSlug;
             });
         }
 
@@ -115,11 +117,29 @@ private function prepareCitationAttributes(array $citationData): array
         return [
             'doi' => $this->normalizeDoi($citationData['doi'] ?? null),
             'title' => $this->normalizeText($citationData['title'] ?? null),
+            'title_slug' => $this->normalizeTitleSlug($citationData['title'] ?? null),
             'authors' => $this->normalizeText($citationData['authors'] ?? null),
             'citation_text' => $this->normalizeText($citationData['citation_text'] ?? null),
         ];
     }
 
+    private function normalizeTitleSlug(mixed $title): ?string
+    {
+        $normalizedTitle = $this->normalizeText($title);
+
+        if (is_null($normalizedTitle)) {
+            return null;
+        }
+
+        $slug = Str::slug($normalizedTitle);
+
+        if ($slug === '') {
+            return null;
+        }
+
+        return $slug;
+    }
+
     private function rememberCitation(Project $project, Citation $citation): void
     {
         $citations = $project->citations;
diff --git a/app/Models/Citation.php b/app/Models/Citation.php
index efa96c31..c24edefd 100644
--- a/app/Models/Citation.php
+++ b/app/Models/Citation.php
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ class Citation extends Model
     protected $fillable = [
         'doi',
         'title',
+        'title_slug',
         'authors',
         'citation_text',
     ];
diff --git a/app/Models/Validation.php b/app/Models/Validation.php
index 2b59efb8..2a6a407e 100644
--- a/app/Models/Validation.php
+++ b/app/Models/Validation.php
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 namespace App\Models;
 
+use Carbon\Carbon;
 use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Factories\HasFactory;
 use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Model;
 use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Relations\HasMany;
@@ -246,6 +247,11 @@ public function process()
             $citations = $project->citations;
             $citationsValidation = [];
             $citationsStatus = true;
+            $shouldValidateCitationDoi = true;
+
+            if ($project->release_date) {
+                $shouldValidateCitationDoi = Carbon::parse($project->release_date)->lessThanOrEqualTo(now());
+            }
 
             foreach ($citations as $citation) {
                 $citationReport = [
@@ -253,17 +259,23 @@ public function process()
                     'id' => $citation->id,
                 ];
 
-                // Check if DOI is present
-                $hasDoi = is_string($citation->doi) && trim($citation->doi) !== '';
+                if ($shouldValidateCitationDoi) {
+                    // Check if DOI is present only for current/past release date projects.
+                    $hasDoi = is_string($citation->doi) && trim($citation->doi) !== '';
+
+                    if ($hasDoi) {
+                        $citationReport['doi'] = 'true|required';
+                    } else {
+                        $citationReport['doi'] = 'false|required';
+                        $citationsStatus = false; // Citation validation failed
+                    }
 
-                if ($hasDoi) {
-                    $citationReport['doi'] = 'true|required';
+                    $citationReport['status'] = $hasDoi;
                 } else {
-                    $citationReport['doi'] = 'false|required';
-                    $citationsStatus = false; // Citation validation failed
+                    $citationReport['doi'] = 'true|skipped-future-release';
+                    $citationReport['status'] = true;
                 }
 
-                $citationReport['status'] = $hasDoi;
                 array_push($citationsValidation, $citationReport);
             }
 
diff --git a/database/migrations/2026_04_01_060726_add_title_slug_to_citations_table.php b/database/migrations/2026_04_01_060726_add_title_slug_to_citations_table.php
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..5a9028c0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/database/migrations/2026_04_01_060726_add_title_slug_to_citations_table.php
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+<?php
+
+use Illuminate\Database\Migrations\Migration;
+use Illuminate\Database\Schema\Blueprint;
+use Illuminate\Support\Facades\DB;
+use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Schema;
+use Illuminate\Support\Str;
+
+return new class extends Migration
+{
+    /**
+     * Run the migrations.
+     */
+    public function up(): void
+    {
+        Schema::table('citations', function (Blueprint $table) {
+            $table->string('title_slug')->nullable()->after('title')->index();
+        });
+
+        DB::table('citations')
+            ->select('id', 'title')
+            ->orderBy('id')
+            ->chunkById(500, function ($citations): void {
+                foreach ($citations as $citation) {
+                    DB::table('citations')
+                        ->where('id', $citation->id)
+                        ->update([
+                            'title_slug' => Str::slug((string) $citation->title),
+                        ]);
+                }
+            });
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Reverse the migrations.
+     */
+    public function down(): void
+    {
+        Schema::table('citations', function (Blueprint $table) {
+            $table->dropIndex(['title_slug']);
+            $table->dropColumn('title_slug');
+        });
+    }
+};
diff --git a/tests/Feature/ManageCitationsTest.php b/tests/Feature/ManageCitationsTest.php
index e849b576..9d616652 100644
--- a/tests/Feature/ManageCitationsTest.php
+++ b/tests/Feature/ManageCitationsTest.php
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@
 use App\Models\Project;
 use App\Models\User;
 use Illuminate\Foundation\Testing\RefreshDatabase;
+use Illuminate\Http\Response;
 use Tests\TestCase;
 
 class ManageCitationsTest extends TestCase
@@ -268,6 +269,53 @@ public function test_citation_duplicate_prevention_by_doi()
         $this->assertEquals('Updated Author', $citation->authors);
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Test citation update uses the existing citation ID when it is already attached.
+     *
+     * @return void
+     */
+    public function test_citation_update_prevention_by_id()
+    {
+        $this->actingAs($user = User::factory()->withPersonalTeam()->create());
+
+        $project = Project::factory()->create([
+            'owner_id' => $user->id,
+        ]);
+
+        $citation = Citation::factory()->create([
+            'title' => 'Original Title',
+            'doi' => '10.1000/original',
+            'authors' => 'Original Author',
+            'citation_text' => 'Original citation text',
+        ]);
+
+        $project->citations()->sync([$citation->id => ['user' => $user->id]]);
+
+        $body = [
+            'citations' => [[
+                'id' => $citation->id,
+                'title' => 'Updated Title',
+                'doi' => '10.1000/updated',
+                'authors' => 'Updated Author',
+                'citation_text' => 'Updated citation text',
+            ]],
+        ];
+
+        $response = $this->updateCitation($body, $project->id);
+        $response->assertStatus(200);
+
+        $project = $project->refresh();
+        $this->assertEquals(1, $project->citations()->count());
+
+        $updatedCitation = $project->citations()->first();
+        $this->assertNotNull($updatedCitation);
+        $this->assertEquals($citation->id, $updatedCitation->id);
+        $this->assertEquals('Updated Title', $updatedCitation->title);
+        $this->assertEquals('10.1000/updated', $updatedCitation->doi);
+        $this->assertEquals('Updated Author', $updatedCitation->authors);
+        $this->assertEquals('Updated citation text', $updatedCitation->citation_text);
+    }
+
     /**
      * Test duplicate citation prevention when DOI is missing.
      *
@@ -360,6 +408,53 @@ public function test_citation_duplicate_prevention_without_doi_with_normalized_c
         $this->assertEquals('Updated text', $citation->citation_text);
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Test duplicate citation prevention without DOI by slugified title.
+     *
+     * @return void
+     */
+    public function test_citation_duplicate_prevention_without_doi_by_title_slug()
+    {
+        $this->actingAs($user = User::factory()->withPersonalTeam()->create());
+
+        $project = Project::factory()->create([
+            'owner_id' => $user->id,
+        ]);
+
+        $firstPayload = [
+            'citations' => [[
+                'title' => 'NMR Study: Alpha/Beta',
+                'doi' => null,
+                'authors' => 'Author One',
+                'citation_text' => 'Initial text',
+            ]],
+        ];
+
+        $response = $this->updateCitation($firstPayload, $project->id);
+        $response->assertStatus(200);
+
+        $secondPayload = [
+            'citations' => [[
+                'title' => 'nmr study alpha beta',
+                'doi' => '',
+                'authors' => 'Completely Different Author',
+                'citation_text' => 'Updated text',
+            ]],
+        ];
+
+        $response = $this->updateCitation($secondPayload, $project->id);
+        $response->assertStatus(200);
+
+        $project = $project->refresh();
+        $this->assertEquals(1, $project->citations()->count());
+
+        $citation = $project->citations()->first();
+        $this->assertNotNull($citation);
+        $this->assertEquals('nmr-study-alpha-beta', $citation->title_slug);
+        $this->assertEquals('Completely Different Author', $citation->authors);
+        $this->assertEquals('Updated text', $citation->citation_text);
+    }
+
     /**
      * Test empty citations array handling
      *
@@ -883,7 +978,7 @@ public function test_citation_destroy_requires_authentication()
     /**
      * Prepare request body for citation
      *
-     * @param  \App\Models\Citation  $citation
+     * @param  Citation  $citation
      * @return array $body
      */
     public function prepareBody($citation)
@@ -907,9 +1002,9 @@ public function prepareBody($citation)
     /**
      * Make Request to update citation
      *
-     * @param  \App\Models\Citation  $citation
+     * @param  Citation  $citation
      * @param  int  $projectId
-     * @return \Illuminate\Http\Response
+     * @return Response
      */
     public function updateCitation($body, $projectId)
     {
@@ -921,9 +1016,9 @@ public function updateCitation($body, $projectId)
     /**
      * Make Request to detach citation
      *
-     * @param  \App\Models\Citation  $citation
+     * @param  Citation  $citation
      * @param  int  $projectId
-     * @return \Illuminate\Http\Response
+     * @return Response
      */
     public function detachCitation($body, $projectId)
     {
diff --git a/tests/Feature/Project/PublishProjectTest.php b/tests/Feature/Project/PublishProjectTest.php
index 1d771d1c..4b4ffea4 100644
--- a/tests/Feature/Project/PublishProjectTest.php
+++ b/tests/Feature/Project/PublishProjectTest.php
@@ -120,6 +120,8 @@ public function test_project_publication_updates_validation_status()
     #[Test]
     public function citations_without_doi_fail_validation(): void
     {
+        $this->project->update(['release_date' => now()->subMinute()]);
+
         $citation = \App\Models\Citation::factory()->create([
             'doi' => null,
         ]);
@@ -145,6 +147,8 @@ public function citations_without_doi_fail_validation(): void
     #[Test]
     public function citations_with_doi_pass_validation(): void
     {
+        $this->project->update(['release_date' => now()->subMinute()]);
+
         $citation = \App\Models\Citation::factory()->create([
             'doi' => '10.1234/test.doi',
         ]);
@@ -166,6 +170,31 @@ public function citations_with_doi_pass_validation(): void
         $this->assertEquals('true|required', $validation->report['project']['citations_detail'][0]['doi']);
     }
 
+    #[Test]
+    public function citations_without_doi_are_skipped_for_future_release_date(): void
+    {
+        $this->project->update(['release_date' => now()->addDay()]);
+
+        $citation = \App\Models\Citation::factory()->create([
+            'doi' => null,
+        ]);
+
+        $this->project->citations()->attach($citation->id, [
+            'user' => $this->user->id,
+        ]);
+
+        $validation = Validation::factory()->create();
+        $this->project->validation_id = $validation->id;
+        $this->project->save();
+
+        $validation->process();
+
+        $this->assertEquals('true|required', $validation->report['project']['citations']);
+        $this->assertNotEmpty($validation->report['project']['citations_detail']);
+        $this->assertEquals(true, $validation->report['project']['citations_detail'][0]['status']);
+        $this->assertEquals('true|skipped-future-release', $validation->report['project']['citations_detail'][0]['doi']);
+    }
+
     public function test_unauthorized_user_cannot_publish_project()
     {
         $unauthorizedUser = User::factory()->create();
diff --git a/tests/Unit/Models/CitationModelTest.php b/tests/Unit/Models/CitationModelTest.php
index bf5607b5..783bff7c 100644
--- a/tests/Unit/Models/CitationModelTest.php
+++ b/tests/Unit/Models/CitationModelTest.php
@@ -4,6 +4,8 @@
 
 use App\Models\Citation;
 use App\Models\Project;
+use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Collection;
+use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Relations\BelongsToMany;
 use Illuminate\Foundation\Testing\RefreshDatabase;
 use Tests\TestCase;
 
@@ -19,7 +21,7 @@ public function test_it_belongs_to_many_projects()
 
         $citation->projects()->attach([$project1->id, $project2->id]);
 
-        $this->assertInstanceOf(\Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Collection::class, $citation->projects);
+        $this->assertInstanceOf(Collection::class, $citation->projects);
         $this->assertCount(2, $citation->projects);
         $this->assertTrue($citation->projects->contains($project1));
         $this->assertTrue($citation->projects->contains($project2));
@@ -27,7 +29,7 @@ public function test_it_belongs_to_many_projects()
 
     public function test_it_has_correct_fillable_attributes()
     {
-        $fillable = ['doi', 'title', 'authors', 'citation_text'];
+        $fillable = ['doi', 'title', 'title_slug', 'authors', 'citation_text'];
         $citation = new Citation;
 
         $this->assertEquals($fillable, $citation->getFillable());
@@ -71,7 +73,7 @@ public function test_projects_relationship_is_many_to_many()
         $citation = Citation::factory()->create();
         $relationship = $citation->projects();
 
-        $this->assertInstanceOf(\Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Relations\BelongsToMany::class, $relationship);
+        $this->assertInstanceOf(BelongsToMany::class, $relationship);
     }
 
     public function test_citation_can_be_attached_to_project()