University of Thi-Qar Journal for Engineering Sciences (UTJES) requires all authors to adhere to the highest ethical standards when submitting research involving human participants, human data, or animal subjects, in accordance with internationally recognized ethical guidelines and the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

1. Human Participants For studies involving human subjects, human tissue, or personal/sensitive data (e.g., in biomedical engineering, ergonomics, or human-computer interaction research), authors must confirm that the research was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. A statement must be included in the manuscript confirming that:

• The study was approved by an appropriate institutional or national ethics review committee, with the approval number and name of the approving body clearly stated.
• Informed consent was obtained from all participants (or their legal guardians, in the case of minors or individuals unable to provide consent).

2. Animal Studies For research involving animal subjects, authors must confirm that the study was conducted in compliance with relevant institutional, national, or international guidelines on the ethical treatment and welfare of animals in research. A statement must be included specifying the approving ethics committee and approval reference number.

3. Required Manuscript Statement Authors must include an Ethical Approval Statement in the Methods section of the manuscript, specifying:

• The name of the ethics committee or institutional review board (IRB) that granted approval.
• The approval/reference number.
• Confirmation of informed consent (for human studies) or adherence to animal welfare guidelines (for animal studies).

If the study was exempt from ethical approval, authors must clearly state the reason for exemption and provide justification.

4. Editorial Discretion The Editorial Board reserves the right to request additional documentation (e.g., a copy of the ethical approval certificate) at any stage of the review or publication process. Manuscripts lacking sufficient ethical documentation may be rejected or require revision before further consideration.

5. Research Misconduct Any violation of ethical research standards, including failure to obtain proper approval or falsification of ethical clearance, will be treated as a serious breach of research integrity and may result in rejection or retraction of the manuscript, in line with COPE guidelines.