6 countries are in the lead, India is ranked…

New Delhi:

France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore and Spain start 2024 with the world's most powerful passport, allowing visa-free entry to 194 global destinations, according to the latest Henley Passport Index. The classification is based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Over the past five years, Japan and Singapore have consistently dominated the top spot. However, this quarter's ranking shows the European countries jumping to the highest levels. Finland and Sweden tied with South Korea for second place, offering visa-free access to 193 destinations. Austria, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands ranked third, giving passport holders access to 192 destinations.

The Indian passport ranked 80th on the list, as citizens are allowed to travel to 62 countries without a visa, including popular tourist destinations such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. India shares its current position with Uzbekistan, while its neighbor Pakistan ranks 101st.

Christian H. Kaelin, Chairman of Henley & Partners and creator of the Passport Index, highlighted the widening global mobility gap between countries. Despite the general trend toward increased travel freedom over the past two decades, the disparity between the top and bottom of the index has reached an all-time high.

“The average number of destinations that travelers can reach without a visa has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024,” Kaelin said.

He stressed that the top-ranked countries now have the privilege of traveling to 166 destinations without a visa, more than Afghanistan, which ranks last on the list, with access to only 28 countries without a visa. Syria ranks second in terms of visa-free access to only 29 destinations, followed by Iraq with 31 and Pakistan with 34.