Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study comparatively motivations for committing fraud in financial statements in two emerging markets including Iran and Iraq. Design/methodology/approach – The research is a descriptive survey and statistical population consists of independent auditors. The field survey and questionnaire were used for data collection. Findings – Findings can raise auditors’ awareness of management fraud motivations. It can help regulators and authorities in both countries as well as other emerging markets for establishing suitable rules and regulation. Originality/value – This paper’s contribution was in identifying and comparing management’s motivations to commit financial reporting fraud int wo emerging markets including Iraq and Iran.

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