SINGAPORE: Singapore has reclaimed the sole top spot in the Henley Passport Index, making it the world’s most powerful passport.
Singaporeans now enjoy visa-free entry to 195 out of 227 travel destinations, surpassing the five countries with which the little red dot previously shared the title.
France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Spain have now moved to second place with visa-free access to 192 destinations.
The Henley Passport Index was updated on July 23 with data from 199 passports and 227 travel destinations.
Earlier in January 2024, these countries, along with Singapore, shared the top spot with access to 194 destinations, as reported by The Straits Times.
An unprecedented seven-nation group now occupies the third spot in the rankings, with access to 191 destinations without a visa. This group includes Austria, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, South Korea, and Sweden.
The United Kingdom, once a top contender, has dropped to fourth place, sharing the position with Belgium, Denmark, New Zealand, Norway, and Switzerland.
These countries have visa-free entry to 190 destinations. Meanwhile, the United States is ranked eighth, with visa-free access to 186 destinations.
Afghanistan remains at the bottom of the index, with visa-free access to only 26 countries.
This represents the lowest score ever recorded since the Henley Passport Index was created 19 years ago. Afghanistan lost visa-free access to one destination in the past six months.
The Henley Passport Index is based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). Over the past two decades, the trend has been towards greater travel freedom.
The global average number of destinations that travellers can access visa-free has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024.
Dr Christian Kaelin, chairman of Henley & Partners and creator of the passport index concept, noted that despite this trend, the global mobility gap between the top and bottom of the index has widened.
Singapore, at the top, can access 169 more destinations visa-free than Afghanistan.
Another notable change in the rankings is the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which made it into the top 10 for the first time.
The UAE passport now offers visa-free access to 185 destinations, a significant rise since the index’s inception, adding 152 destinations to its portfolio over the years.
In July 2023, Singapore replaced Japan as the country with the world’s most powerful passport, according to The Straits Times. /TISG
Read also: Singapore passport ranks second in latest list of world’s most powerful passports
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