World’s Most ‘Powerful’ Passports in 2024

Singapore and Japan have dominated 1^st place on the index (which ranks all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa) for the past five years. This year they are joined by four EU member states — France, Germany, Italy, and Spain — to be the most “powerful” passports in the world, with their citizens able to visit 194 destinations out of 227 around the globe visa-free

AN unprecedented six countries share the top spot with visa-free access to a record-breaking number of destinations in the 2024 Henley Passport Index, which is based on official data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). Dr. Christian H. Kaelin, Chairman of Henley & Partners and the inventor of the passport index concept, says although the general trend over the history of the 19-year-old ranking has been towards greater travel freedom, the global mobility gap between those at the top and bottom of the index is now wider than ever. “The average number of destinations travelers are able to access visa-free has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024. However, as we enter the new year, the top-ranked countries are now able to travel to a staggering 166 more destinations visa-free than Afghanistan, which sits at the bottom of the ranking with access to just 28 countries without a visa.”

Asian tiger South Korea joins Finland and Sweden in 2nd place with visa-free travel to 193 destinations, and another four EU nations — Austria, Denmark, Ireland, and Netherlands — share 3rd place with access to 192. The rest of the Top 10 is largely dominated by European countries, with the UK climbing up two ranks to 4th place with visa-free access to 191 destinations compared to just 188 a year ago. Australia and New Zealand passport holders both improve their ranking to sit in 6th place with 189 visa-free destinations, while the US retains its 7th place with access to 188 destinations without requiring a visa in advance. It has been a decade since the UK and the US jointly held 1st place on the index in 2014.

Source: Henley & Partners