Indian passport 85th most powerful in the world, slips two spots from 2022

Henley Passport Index 2023: Japan topped the ranking followed by South Korea and Singapore

With visa-free entry in 59 countries, the Indian passport ranks 85th in the list of most powerful passports in the world, according to the Henley Passport Index released Tuesday. It has slipped two spots from the 83rd rank in 2022. Japan's passport continues to be the most powerful in the world, with visa-free entry in 193 countries. 

South Korea and Singapore stand in the second spot. Germany and Spain jointly hold third place in the ranking. 

"Japanese citizens are now able to visit an astonishing 193 destinations out of 227 around the world visa-free, while South Koreans and Singaporeans, whose countries are tied in 2nd place on the index, enjoy a visa-free/visa-on-arrival score of 192. Germany and Spain are joint 3rd, with visa-free access to 190 destinations worldwide. The UK and the US remain in 6th and 7th places, with scores of 187 and 186, respectively, and it appears increasingly unlikely that either country will ever regain the top spot on the index, which they jointly held nearly a decade ago in 2014," Henley & Partners that publishes the ranking said in its press release. 

Afghanistan's passport was the worst passport according to the ranking. 

The report added that just 6 per cent of passports worldwide give their holders visa-free access to more than 70 per cent of the global economy. And only 17 per cent of countries give their passport holders visa-free access to more than four-fifths of the world's 227 destinations.

For India, the report said, "...despite having the world's fifth-largest economy: its passport holders can access just 59 destinations worldwide and only 6.7 per cent of global GDP, of which the country's own GDP accounts for around half."

In 2023, the countries are opening up after three years of stagnation, and international travel is surging to a record level. 

"International travel is surging to record levels, dozens of countries have launched nomad visa or golden visa schemes, and relocations are surging to take advantage of remote work opportunities, settle in friendly tax regimes, or adapt to the impact of climate change on property markets," Parag Khanna, member of Henley & Partners Advisory Board said.