Recently, Germany has been declared as the country with the most powerful passport in the world. Its passport has visa-free access to 176 countries.The ranking by Henley & Partners, a citizenship and planning firm, takes into account how many countries can be visited without applying for a visa. German passport holders can travel to 176 out of a possible 218, while Britons can visit 173.
In addition, Sweden is in the second position with 175 countries, and Denmark, Finland, Italy, Spain and United States jointly ranked third, with their nationals enjoying access to 174 countries.
“We have witnessed several major events recently that are likely to have an impact on global mobility – including Brexit and the election of US President Donald Trump,” said Dr Christian H. Kälin, chairman of Henley & Partners. He further said: “Both can be interpreted as steps toward restricting movement and creating barriers to entry. This trend towards curbing travel freedom is already apparent in the shift in rankings on this year’s Visa Restrictions Index.”
The United Kingdom, however, dropped to fourth, having shared first place with Germany for three consecutive years from 2013–2015.
This could be as a result of the recent little restrictions. British have visa-free access to 173 countries.
Syria, Pakistan, Iraq and Afghanistan sit at the very bottom of the index, each with visa-free access to less than 30 countries worldwide. Brazil and China both increased their standing, moving up three and two ranks respectively.
The 2017 list containing nearly 200 countries – with some sharing position – was released by Henley and Partners, the firm which conducts the annual ranking.
1-100 list of countries with the most powerful passports below:
1 – Germany
2 – Sweden
3 – Denmark, Finland, Italy, Spain, United States
4 – Austria, Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, United Kingdom
5 – Ireland, Japan, New Zealand
6 – Canada, Greece, Portugal, Switzerland
7 – Australia, South Korea
8 – Iceland
9 – Czech Republic
10 – Hungary, Malta
11 – Lithuania
12 – Latvia, Liechtenstein, Slovakia, Slovenia
13 – Estonia, Malaysia
14 – Poland
15 – Monaco
16 – Cyprus
17 – Chile
18 – Brazil
19 – Andorra, San Marino
20 – Argentina, Bulgaria
21 – Croatia, Romania
22 – Hong Kong
23 – Brunei Darussalam
24 – Israel
25 – Barbados
26 – Mexico
27 – Bahamas
28 – Uruguay
29 – Seychelles
30 – Antigua and Barbuda, St. Kitts and Nevis
31 – Costa Rica, Taiwan, Vatican City
32 – Trinidad and Tobago
33 – Mauritius
34 – Venezuela
35 – Paraguay
36 – Macao, Panama, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines
37 – Grenada
38 – Honduras, United Arab Emirates
39 – El Salvador
40 – Dominica, Guatemala
41 – Peru
42 – Solomon Islands
43 – Serbia
44 – Samoa
45 – Vanuatu
46 – Marshall Islands, Nicaragua
47 – Tonga
48 – Macedonia, Tuvalu
49 – Kiribati
50 – Colombia, Montenegro
51 – Micronesia, Russian Federation
52 – Palau, Turkey
53 – Bosnia Herzegovina
54 – Moldova
55 – Albania, South Africa
56 – Belize
57 – Ecuador, Timor Leste
58 – Ukraine
59 – Guyana
60 – Kuwait, Maldives, Nauru
61 – Fiji
62 – Jamaica, Qatar
63 – Papua New Guinea
64 – Bolivia
65 – Botswana, Suriname
66 – Bahrain
67 – Kazakhstan, Namibia, Thailand
68 – Georgia, Kenya, Oman
69 – Saudi Arabia
70 – Belarus, Lesotho, Malawi
71 – Gambia, Swaziland
72 – Tanzania,
73 – Cape Verde, Tunisia, Zambia
74 – Azerbaijan
75 – Philippines, Uganda
76 – Cuba, Ghana
77 – Zimbabwe
78 – Armenia, Benin, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco
79 – Indonesia
80 – Burkina Faso, Dominican Republic, Mongolia
81 – Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone
82 – Mauritania
83 – Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal, Tajikistan, Togo, Uzbekistan
84 – Niger
85 – Bhutan, Chad, China, Mali, Rwanda
86 – Gabon, Haiti, Madagascar
87 – Guinea-Bissau, India, Turkmenistan, Algeria, Cambodia, Comoros, Egypt, Guinea, Laos
89 – Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea
90 – Angola, Cameroon, Vietnam
91 – Burundi, Nigeria
92 – Congo, Jordan, Liberia
93 – Myanmar
94 – Djibouti, North Korea
95 – Bangladesh, Iran
95 – Sri Lanka
96 – Ethiopia, Lebanon, South Sudan
97 – Nepal, Palestinian Territory, Sudan
98 – Eritrea, Yemen
99 – Libya
100 – Somalia
Passports of the world are sorted by their total Visa-Free Score, which includes visa-free and visa on arrival privileges. The higher the VFS, the better global mobility its passport bearer enjoys. However, it is important for every country to review the level of power its passport carries. This is very essential as the citizens stand to enjoy easy access to global mobility.
