Henley Index manifests most powerful, worst passports of 2019
The Henley Passport Index is the most rigorous and sophisticated measure of global access.
LONDON (Web Desk) – Japan and Singapore has emerged as the most powerful passport country whereas Pakistan has been placed at 104th position by London-based firm, Henley & Partners.
According to an international news agency, now, as we enter the final quarter of 2019, Japan and Singapore have held onto their position as the world’s most travel-friendly passports.
That’s the view of the Henley Passport Index, which periodically measures the access each country’s travel document affords.
Singapore and Japan’s passports have topped the rankings thanks to both documents offering access to 190 countries each.
South Korea rubs shoulders with Finland and Germany in second place, with citizens of all three countries able to access 188 jurisdictions around the world without a prior visa.
Finland has benefited from recent changes to Pakistan’s formerly highly restrictive visa policy. Pakistan now offers an ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) to citizens of 50 countries, including Finland, Japan, Spain, Malta, Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates -- but not, notably, the United States or the UK.
The European countries of Denmark, Italy and Luxembourg hold third place in the index, with visa-free/visa-on-arrival access to 187 countries, while France, Spain and Sweden are in the fourth slot, with a score of 186.
Five years ago, the United States and the UK topped the rankings in 2014 -- but both countries have now slipped down to sixth place, the lowest position either has held since 2010.
While the Brexit process has yet to directly impact on the UK’s ranking, the Henley Passport Index press release observed in July, "with its exit from the EU now imminent, and coupled with ongoing confusion about the terms of its departure, the UK’s once-strong position looks increasingly uncertain."
The United Arab Emirates continues its ascent up the rankings, up five places to rank 15th.
"It’s the strongest climber this quarter," Lorraine Charles at Cambridge University’s Centre for Business Research says in the October release.
"While the UAE may not be able to compete with Saudi Arabia -- the regional hegemon -- in terms of military strength and economic power, the projection of its soft power is uncontested in the GCC."
The best passports to hold in 2019 are:
1. Japan, Singapore (190 destinations)
2. Finland, Germany, South Korea (188)
3. Denmark, Italy, Luxembourg (187)
4. France, Spain, Sweden (186)
5. Austria, Netherlands, Portugal (185)
6. Belgium, Canada, Greece, Ireland, Norway, United Kingdom, United States, Switzerland (184)
7. Malta, Czech Republic (183)
8. New Zealand (182)
9. Australia, Lithuania, Slovakia (181)
10. Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Slovenia (180)
The worst passports to hold are:
Several countries around the world have visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to fewer than 40 countries. These include:
100. Lebanon, North Korea (39 destinations)
101. Nepal (38)
102. Libya, Palestinian Territory, Sudan (37)
103. Yemen (33)
104. Somalia, Pakistan (31)
105. Syria (29)
106. Iraq (27)
107. Afghanistan (25)
The Henley Passport Index is the most rigorous and sophisticated measure of global access. It goes beyond a simple ranking of passports to provide you with an in-depth picture of your travel freedom, including which countries you can access with which type of visa, how your passport has changed over the last 14 years, how your passport compares to other passports, why your passport has the level of access it does, and which additional passports would improve your mobility.
The Henley Passport Index is the only passport index that is based on IATA data, enhanced by extensive in-house research, supported by expert commentary, and updated regularly throughout the year, making it the most robust, credible, and reliable index of its kind.
