Singapore continues to have one of the world’s most powerful passports, with the number of countries and regions its passport holders can enter visa-free remaining at 192, tying with South Korea for second place.
According to the latest report compiled by global residence and citizenship advisory firm Henley & Partners, the Japanese passport tops the list with a visa-free score of 193 countries/regions.
The latest ranking is released as global travel accelerates its recovery more than two years into the Covid-19 pandemic.
Last October, Singapore and Japan shared the top spot, with passport holders able to enter 192 countries and regions visa-free or with a visa-on-arrival.
Professor Lawrence Loh from the National University of Singapore Business School said: “Singapore’s passport index reveals just the tip of the iceberg. It also reflects Singapore’s excellent international reputation on the global stage, especially its strong national governance.”
“This also indicates that Singapore has high-quality talent. Most importantly, I think the Singapore passport is a good indicator of the trust other countries have in Singapore’s reputation.”
On the other hand, Henley and Partners also stated that Russian passport holders are increasingly being isolated from the world due to sanctions, travel bans, and airspace closures that restrict Russians from entering most countries and regions in Asia and the Middle East.
The Russian passport currently ranks 50th on the passport index, allowing visa-free access to 119 countries. China is ranked 69th with visa-free access to 80 countries, while India’s passport index is ranked 87th.
The passport index also shows a strong correlation between a country’s passport strength and its level of peace.
The top ten countries in the Henley Passport Index can also be found in the top ten of the Global Peace Index. The Global Peace Index is a set of indicators that measure the level of peace and security in a country or region, compiled by the Sydney-based Institute for Economics and Peace. Countries at the bottom of the Peace Index are also at the bottom of the passport index.
Mr. Stephen Klimczuk-Massion, a fellow at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, and a member of the Swiss non-profit Andan Foundation committee, stated: “The relative strength of a country’s passport directly affects the quality of life for its holder and, in some cases, can even be a matter of life and death.”
This passport index uses 17 years of data to help governments assess the value of citizenships around the world based on which passports offer the most extensive visa-free or visa-on-arrival access.
Nevertheless, as global travel has not yet fully recovered from the restrictions of the Covid-19 pandemic, the index only theoretically showcases the world’s most valuable identity documents as it emerges from the pandemic’s impact.
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