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Who’s the itty-bitty city-state with the worldwide passport the world thinks is nice?
There’s new yr cheer for Singapore because it reclaims its place on the high of a quarterly rating of the world’s most powerful passports.
Holders of this fascinating crimson journey doc take pleasure in visa-free entry to 195 out of 227 locations worldwide, in response to the Henley Passport Index, greater than residents of every other place on the planet.
Japan is second within the rating, with an open door to 193 locations, having secured the silver medal by regaining visa-free entry to neighboring China for the primary time for the reason that Covid-19 lockdowns.
The EU member states of France, Germany, Italy and Spain are at No. 3, together with Finland and South Korea, with entry to 192 locations with no prior visa wanted.
The fourth place within the rankings is a testomony to the ability of the European Union’s border-free Schengen space, which ensures free motion to greater than 425 million EU residents. It’s held by seven EU nations, every with visa-free entry to 191 locations: Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway and Sweden.
Squeaking into fifth place are 5 nations — Belgium, New Zealand, Portugal, Switzerland and the United Kingdom — all of which have visa-free entry to 190 locations.
Now in its twentieth yr, the index, created by London-based international citizenship and residence advisory agency Henley & Partners, tracks international freedoms in 227 nations and territories around the globe, utilizing unique information from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
At the other finish of the rating, at No. 106, Afghanistan stays locked in backside place, with visa-free entry to only 26 locations, two fewer than a yr in the past. Syria is at No. 105 (with 27 locations) and Iraq is at No. 104 (with 31 locations).
This implies that the hole between the journey freedoms loved by the residents on the high and backside of the rating has by no means been wider.
“The very notion of citizenship and its birthright lottery needs a fundamental rethink as temperatures rise, natural disasters become more frequent and severe, displacing communities and rendering their environments uninhabitable,” mentioned Christian H. Kaelin, chair of Henley and Partners, in a press launch.
“Simultaneously, political instability and armed conflicts in various regions force countless people to flee their homes in search of safety and refuge.”
Climbers and fallers
The remainder of the highest 10 is dominated by European nations, with just a few exceptions. Australia and Greece are tied at No. 6, whereas Malta, Poland and Canada are at No. 7.
Eighth place is shared by Czechia and Hungary, the United States and Estonia are at No. 9, and No. 10 is held by Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia and the United Arab Emirates.
The UAE is likely one of the index’s greatest success tales in international mobility, having secured entry to an extra 72 locations since 2015, permitting it to climb 32 locations to tenth spot with visa-free entry to 185 locations.
China can also be a giant climber, having jumped up the record from 94th place in 2015 to No. 60 in 2025.
Only 22 of the world’s 199 passports have fallen down the rating previously decade and a few shocking names are on the high of the record.
Venezuela is at No. 1, adopted by the United States because the second-highest faller. It’s dropped seven locations from No. 2 to No. 9.
The South Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu is at No. 4, adopted by the British passport at No. 5 — a former No. 1. Canada is No. 5 on the losers record, having dropped three locations within the rating within the final decade.
Henley & Partners’ record is certainly one of a number of indexes created by monetary companies to rank international passports in response to the entry they supply to their residents.
Arton Capital’s Passport Index takes into consideration the passports of 193 United Nations member nations and 6 territories — Taiwan, Macao, Hong Kong, Kosovo, the Palestinian territories and the Vatican. Territories annexed to different nations are excluded.
It’s additionally up to date in real-time all year long, however its information is gathered by shut monitoring of particular person governments’ portals.
Arton’s Global Passport Power Rank 2025 places the United Arab Emirates within the high spot, with a visa-free/visa-on-arrival rating of 180. Second place is held by Spain, with a rating of 179.
1. Singapore (195 locations)
2. Japan (193)
3. France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Finland, South Korea (192)
4. Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway (191)
5. Belgium, New Zealand, Portugal, Switzerland, United Kingdom (190)
6. Greece, Australia (189)
7. Canada, Poland, Malta (188)
8. Hungary, Czechia (187)
9. Estonia, United States (186)
10. Lithuania, Latvia, Slovenia, United Arab Emirates (185)