The 20th anniversary edition of the Henley Passport Index is out, showcasing just how much global mobility has changed in 20 years.
Leading for accessibility, yet again, is Singapore with visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 192 destinations, while the United Arab Emirates was the biggest mover since Jan, having climbed three places to join Japan and South Korea in second place with access to 188 destinations.
The UAE has also seen the greatest improvement of any passport in the index’s history, having added 153 visa-free destinations over 20 years. Sweden was third, with a score of 187, while Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain shared fourth place, with 186.
Austria and Greece shared fifth place with Malta, Portugal and Switzerland, with access to 185 countries visa-free, while in sixth was Hungary, Poland and the UK, with a score of 184. Australia and New Zealand both sat in seventh place with visa-free access to 183 countries, equal with Canada, Czechia, Latvia, Malaysia, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Interestingly, the US remained in 10th place, now one of the few top-ranked passports whose citizens still require a visa to visit China.
. . . 20 Years
This latest Henley Passport Index shows that the average passport now provides visa-free access to 108 destinations worldwide, significantly up on the 58 when the index was first launched in 2006.
In 2006, the most powerful passports were those held by citizens of the US, Denmark, and Finland, providing visa-free access to 130 destinations. As mentioned, Singapore now sits at the top of the index with access to 62 more destinations than 2026’s leaders.
. . . The Challenged
Unfortunately these big gains were not experienced by all. In 2006 Afghanistan ranked last with access to just 12 destinations, creating a 118-destination gap between the top and bottom of the index.
This latest index shows Afghanistan remaining at the bottom with access to only 22 destinations, some 170 destinations less than the leading passport. See the rankings HERE.
