Henley Passport Index ranks 199 passports in the world based on the number of 227 global destinations they offer visa-free access to. Let’s have a look at the major highlights of this year’s ranking.
Singapore has reclaimed its position as the world’s most powerful passport, granting visa-free access to 195 out of 227 global destinations worldwide. Japan holds 2nd position with access to 193 destinations.
Tying at the third position, EU member states France, Germany, Italy, and Spain along with Finland and South Korea now have access to 192 destinations with no visa.
Another set of EU nations—Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway and Sweden—share the fourth position with visa-free access to 191 destinations.
The EU group of Belgium, New Zealand, Portugal, Switzerland and the UK stand at the fifth position offering 190 visa-free destinations.
Last year in 2024, EU states France, Germany and Italy along with Japan, Singapore and Spain held the first position with access to 194 destinations.
The Indian passport dropped 5 positions, ranking 85th this year with 57 visa-free destinations, down from 62 in 2024 when it held the 80th position.
Afghanistan has the world’s weakest passport at 106th position with access to only 26 destinations out of 227. It was also at the last position in 2024, with 28 visa-free destinations at the 104th position.
The other two weakest passports in the world are of Iraq and Syria—at 104th and 105th positions with 31 and 27 destinations, respectively.
The UAE holds the 10th position and was the biggest climber this time, becoming the first and only Arab nation to make it to the top 10 with visa-free access to 185 destinations, jumping from just 72 destinations in 2015.
Over the past decade, only 22 of the world's 199 passports have seen a decline in their ranking on the Henley Passport Index. The US and the UK were among the biggest losers.
The United States experienced the second-largest drop, falling seven places from 2nd to 9th, just behind Venezuela, which saw the biggest. The British passport, once at the top in 2015, now holds 5th place.
China was also one of the biggest climbers in the last 10 years, holding the 60th spot this year with access to 85 destinations visa-free from 94th in 2015 with just 40.
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