South Khorasan Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran, located in the eastern part of the country. Birjand is the centre and capital of the province. At the time of the National Census of 2006, the province had a population of 600,568 in 159,255 households. The following census in 2011 counted 662,534 people in 183,114 households. In 2014, it was placed in Region 5. At the most recent census in 2016, the population of South Khorasan province had risen to 768,898 in 223,984 households.

North Khorasan Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran, located in the northeast of the country. The capital of the province is the city of Bojnord. North Khorasan is one of the three provinces that were created after the division of Khorasan in 2004. Khorasan was the largest province of Iran until it was divided into three provinces on September 29, 2004. The provinces approved by the parliament of Iran and the Council of Guardians were Razavi Khorasan, North Khorasan, and South Khorasan.