diff --git a/opus_submitter/src/App.vue b/opus_submitter/src/App.vue
index 5a114a1..2c3b455 100644
--- a/opus_submitter/src/App.vue
+++ b/opus_submitter/src/App.vue
@@ -97,7 +97,8 @@ onMounted(async () => {
 
 const handleSubmission = async (submissionData: { 
   files: any[], 
-  notes?: string 
+  notes?: string,
+  manualValidationRequested?: boolean
 }) => {
   try {
     isLoading.value = true
@@ -107,7 +108,8 @@ const handleSubmission = async (submissionData: {
     const response = await submissionHelpers.createFromFiles(
       submissionData.files,
       puzzles.value,
-      submissionData.notes
+      submissionData.notes,
+      submissionData.manualValidationRequested
     )
     
     if (response.error) {
diff --git a/opus_submitter/src/components/SubmissionForm.vue b/opus_submitter/src/components/SubmissionForm.vue
index 6965f1a..d7705d4 100644
--- a/opus_submitter/src/components/SubmissionForm.vue
+++ b/opus_submitter/src/components/SubmissionForm.vue
@@ -40,6 +40,25 @@
           </div>
         </div>
         
+        <!-- Manual Validation Request -->
+        <div class="form-control">
+          <label class="label cursor-pointer justify-start gap-3">
+            <input 
+              type="checkbox" 
+              v-model="manualValidationRequested"
+              class="checkbox checkbox-primary"
+            />
+            <div class="flex-1">
+              <span class="label-text font-medium">Request manual validation</span>
+              <div class="label-text-alt text-xs opacity-70 mt-1">
+                Check this if you want an admin to manually review your submission, even if OCR confidence is high.
+                <br>
+                <em>Note: This will be automatically checked if any OCR confidence is below 50%.</em>
+              </div>
+            </div>
+          </label>
+        </div>
+        
         <!-- Submit Button -->
         <div class="card-actions justify-end">
           <button 
@@ -57,7 +76,7 @@
 </template>
 
 <script setup lang="ts">
-import { ref, computed } from 'vue'
+import { ref, computed, watch } from 'vue'
 import FileUpload from './FileUpload.vue'
 import type { SteamCollectionItem, SubmissionFile } from '@/types'
 
@@ -67,7 +86,7 @@ interface Props {
 }
 
 interface Emits {
-  submit: [submissionData: { files: SubmissionFile[], notes?: string }]
+  submit: [submissionData: { files: SubmissionFile[], notes?: string, manualValidationRequested?: boolean }]
 }
 
 const props = defineProps<Props>()
@@ -75,6 +94,7 @@ const emit = defineEmits<Emits>()
 
 const submissionFiles = ref<SubmissionFile[]>([])
 const notes = ref('')
+const manualValidationRequested = ref(false)
 const isSubmitting = ref(false)
 
 const notesLength = computed(() => notes.value.length)
@@ -104,6 +124,23 @@ const responsesByPuzzle = computed(() => {
   return grouped
 })
 
+// Check if any OCR confidence is below 50%
+const hasLowConfidence = computed(() => {
+  return submissionFiles.value.some(file => {
+    if (!file.ocrData?.confidence) return false
+    return file.ocrData.confidence.cost < 0.5 || 
+           file.ocrData.confidence.cycles < 0.5 || 
+           file.ocrData.confidence.area < 0.5
+  })
+})
+
+// Auto-check manual validation when confidence is low
+watch(hasLowConfidence, (newValue) => {
+  if (newValue && !manualValidationRequested.value) {
+    manualValidationRequested.value = true
+  }
+}, { immediate: true })
+
 const handleSubmit = async () => {
   if (!canSubmit.value) return
   
@@ -113,12 +150,14 @@ const handleSubmit = async () => {
     // Emit the files and notes for the parent to handle API submission
     emit('submit', {
       files: submissionFiles.value,
-      notes: notes.value.trim() || undefined
+      notes: notes.value.trim() || undefined,
+      manualValidationRequested: manualValidationRequested.value
     })
     
     // Reset form
     submissionFiles.value = []
     notes.value = ''
+    manualValidationRequested.value = false
     
   } catch (error) {
     console.error('Submission error:', error)
diff --git a/opus_submitter/src/services/apiService.ts b/opus_submitter/src/services/apiService.ts
index 967f098..c44a9ee 100644
--- a/opus_submitter/src/services/apiService.ts
+++ b/opus_submitter/src/services/apiService.ts
@@ -115,6 +115,7 @@ export class ApiService {
   async createSubmission(
     submissionData: {
       notes?: string
+      manual_validation_requested?: boolean
       responses: Array<{
         puzzle_id: number
         puzzle_name: string
@@ -225,9 +226,10 @@ export const puzzleHelpers = {
 
 export const submissionHelpers = {
   async createFromFiles(
-    files: SubmissionFile[],
+    files: SubmissionFile[], 
     puzzles: SteamCollectionItem[],
-    notes?: string
+    notes?: string,
+    manualValidationRequested?: boolean
   ): Promise<ApiResponse<Submission>> {
     // Group files by detected puzzle
     const responsesByPuzzle: Record<string, {
@@ -286,7 +288,11 @@ export const submissionHelpers = {
     // Extract actual File objects for upload
     const fileObjects = files.map(f => f.file)
 
-    return apiService.createSubmission({ notes, responses }, fileObjects)
+    return apiService.createSubmission({ 
+      notes, 
+      manual_validation_requested: manualValidationRequested,
+      responses 
+    }, fileObjects)
   },
 
   async loadSubmissions(limit = 20, offset = 0): Promise<Submission[]> {
diff --git a/opus_submitter/src/types/index.ts b/opus_submitter/src/types/index.ts
index d9b60d1..ee08b40 100644
--- a/opus_submitter/src/types/index.ts
+++ b/opus_submitter/src/types/index.ts
@@ -78,6 +78,7 @@ export interface Submission {
   is_validated?: boolean
   validated_by?: number | null
   validated_at?: string | null
+  manual_validation_requested?: boolean
   total_responses?: number
   needs_validation?: boolean
   created_at?: string
diff --git a/opus_submitter/submissions/admin.py b/opus_submitter/submissions/admin.py
index 4669a4a..eafe150 100644
--- a/opus_submitter/submissions/admin.py
+++ b/opus_submitter/submissions/admin.py
@@ -168,10 +168,10 @@ class PuzzleResponseInline(admin.TabularInline):
 class SubmissionAdmin(admin.ModelAdmin):
     list_display = [
         "id", "user", "total_responses", "needs_validation", 
-        "is_validated", "created_at"
+        "manual_validation_requested", "is_validated", "created_at"
     ]
     list_filter = [
-        "is_validated", "created_at", "updated_at"
+        "is_validated", "manual_validation_requested", "created_at", "updated_at"
     ]
     search_fields = ["id", "user__username", "notes"]
     readonly_fields = ["id", "created_at", "updated_at", "total_responses", "needs_validation"]
@@ -182,7 +182,7 @@ class SubmissionAdmin(admin.ModelAdmin):
             "fields": ("id", "user", "notes")
         }),
         ("Validation", {
-            "fields": ("is_validated", "validated_by", "validated_at")
+            "fields": ("manual_validation_requested", "is_validated", "validated_by", "validated_at")
         }),
         ("Statistics", {
             "fields": ("total_responses", "needs_validation"),
diff --git a/opus_submitter/submissions/api.py b/opus_submitter/submissions/api.py
index 9a85c2a..a59c541 100644
--- a/opus_submitter/submissions/api.py
+++ b/opus_submitter/submissions/api.py
@@ -67,10 +67,19 @@ def create_submission(
 
     try:
         with transaction.atomic():
+            # Check if any confidence score is below 50% to auto-request validation
+            auto_request_validation = any(
+                (response_data.ocr_confidence_cost is not None and response_data.ocr_confidence_cost < 0.5) or
+                (response_data.ocr_confidence_cycles is not None and response_data.ocr_confidence_cycles < 0.5) or
+                (response_data.ocr_confidence_area is not None and response_data.ocr_confidence_area < 0.5)
+                for response_data in data.responses
+            )
+            
             # Create the submission
             submission = Submission.objects.create(
                 user=request.user if request.user.is_authenticated else None,
                 notes=data.notes,
+                manual_validation_requested=data.manual_validation_requested or auto_request_validation,
             )
 
             file_index = 0
diff --git a/opus_submitter/submissions/migrations/0007_submission_manual_validation_requested.py b/opus_submitter/submissions/migrations/0007_submission_manual_validation_requested.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5d1c432
--- /dev/null
+++ b/opus_submitter/submissions/migrations/0007_submission_manual_validation_requested.py
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+# Generated by Django 5.2.7 on 2025-10-30 11:05
+
+from django.db import migrations, models
+
+
+class Migration(migrations.Migration):
+
+    dependencies = [
+        ('submissions', '0006_remove_puzzleresponse_ocr_confidence_score_and_more'),
+    ]
+
+    operations = [
+        migrations.AddField(
+            model_name='submission',
+            name='manual_validation_requested',
+            field=models.BooleanField(default=False, help_text='Whether the user specifically requested manual validation'),
+        ),
+    ]
diff --git a/opus_submitter/submissions/models.py b/opus_submitter/submissions/models.py
index ca82281..fdf856d 100644
--- a/opus_submitter/submissions/models.py
+++ b/opus_submitter/submissions/models.py
@@ -242,6 +242,12 @@ class Submission(models.Model):
     validated_at = models.DateTimeField(
         null=True, blank=True, help_text="When this submission was validated"
     )
+    
+    # Manual validation request
+    manual_validation_requested = models.BooleanField(
+        default=False, 
+        help_text="Whether the user specifically requested manual validation"
+    )
 
     # Timestamps
     created_at = models.DateTimeField(auto_now_add=True)
diff --git a/opus_submitter/submissions/schemas.py b/opus_submitter/submissions/schemas.py
index fc8a149..2cdf37b 100644
--- a/opus_submitter/submissions/schemas.py
+++ b/opus_submitter/submissions/schemas.py
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@ class SubmissionIn(Schema):
     """Schema for creating a submission"""
 
     notes: Optional[str] = None
+    manual_validation_requested: bool = False
     responses: List[PuzzleResponseIn]
 
 
@@ -102,6 +103,7 @@ class SubmissionOut(ModelSchema):
             "is_validated",
             "validated_by",
             "validated_at",
+            "manual_validation_requested",
             "created_at",
             "updated_at",
         ]