The latest report from the Henley Passport Index, which ranks passports from 199 countries worldwide according to 227 destination destinations, shows that residents of Singapore currently hold the ‘strongest’ passports, as they are allowed visa-free entry into as many as 193 countries. Singapore thus took first place on the list, surpassing Japan, which held this title last year and the year before. Japanese citizens can freely enter 192 countries.
Finland ranks third, having ‘jumped’ from last year’s sixth place, followed by France, Germany, and Italy. Residents of these four countries, as well as South Korea, Spain, and Sweden, can enter 191 countries visa-free.
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Most EU countries are in the first part of the list, with Croatia in 15th place, with 176 countries that Croatians can travel to without a visa, which is one country more than last year. It is worth noting that last year Croatia recorded a huge leap in passport strength, as in the last ten years, Croatians have been allowed visa-free entry into as many as 46 countries, including the United States. The US, on the other hand, has recorded the smallest increase in its score on the Henley Passport Index over the ten-year period, with only 12 added destinations.
The largest leap of 44 places on the list, from 56th to 12th place, has been recorded by the United Arab Emirates, with as many as 107 visa-free destinations more. Colombia follows in second place with a jump of 28 places to 37th place, while Ukraine and China are among the top ten countries with the largest jumps on the list.
Middle Eastern countries at the bottom of the list
At the opposite end of the list are countries whose passports currently mean little in the world, as their residents face difficulties entering almost every country and need a visa. This year, Afghanistan (whose residents are allowed entry into only 27 countries), Syria (28), and Iran (30) again found themselves at the very bottom of the passport strength list.
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Most countries have increased the number of visa-free destinations over the years, while residents of only eight countries in the world today need more visas than they did ten years ago.
Russia has climbed one place from last year’s 50th position on the passport list. However, given the sanctions imposed on it by the European Union due to the invasion of Ukraine and the fact that the Henley Passport Index does not take such temporary mobility restrictions into account, the actual strength of the Russian passport is currently significantly lower. Nevertheless, since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, nearly a million residents have left Russia, according to Business Insider.
New methodology
Unlike previous years, Henley & Partners conducted an exclusive new study this year on the relationship between a country’s openness to foreigners (i.e., how many nations allow crossing its borders without visas) and the freedom of travel for its own citizens.
The top 20 ‘most open’ countries are small island nations or African states, except for Cambodia. There are only twelve completely open countries in the world that offer visa-free entry or visa on arrival for all 198 passports in the world (excluding their own), namely: Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Guinea-Bissau, Maldives, Micronesia, Mozambique, Rwanda, Samoa, Seychelles, Timor-Leste, and Tuvalu.
At the bottom of the openness index are four countries that do not allow visa-free access for any passport, namely Afghanistan, North Korea, Papua New Guinea, and Turkmenistan. Thus, Afghanistan is simultaneously the country whose residents have the least opportunity to travel to other countries without a visa, but also the least open country to foreigners. North Korea is not far behind.
Libya, Bhutan, Eritrea, Equatorial Guinea, and India allow visa-free access to fewer than five other countries.
The gap is greater than ever
However, over the eighteen years of passport ranking, researchers behind the Henley Passport Index have observed an increasing freedom of travel. The average number of destinations that travelers can access without visas has nearly doubled – from 58 in 2006 to 109 in 2023. However, the global mobility gap between those at the top and bottom of the index is currently greater than ever.
– Much more than just a travel document that defines our freedom of movement, a strong passport also provides significant financial freedoms in terms of international investments and business opportunities. Global connectivity has become an indispensable feature of wealth creation and preservation, and its value will only grow as geopolitical volatility and regional instability increase – stated Christian H. Kaelin, president of Henley & Partners and the conceptualizer of the passport index concept.
