France, Germany, Italy and Spain lead the world’s most powerful passports

Traveling around the world is much easier for some people than others, but this has a lot to do with nationality, and more specifically, which passport you hold. Holders of the most powerful passports can visit almost 200 other countries without a visa, while the least powerful passports give access to only a few dozen countries.

Citizenship and immigration consultancy Henley & Partners has released its annual list of the world’s most powerful passports, based on the number of countries their holders can visit without a visa. The 2024 Henley Passport Index reveals a significant and growing gap between the most powerful and weakest powers, and also reveals some changes from last year’s rankings. I did.

European countries dominate the list of the world’s most powerful passports, with four EU countries – France, Germany, Italy and Spain – joining Japan and Singapore in the ranking with visa-free access to 194 countries and territories each. It is at the top. The two Asian countries have sat alone at the top of the list for the past five years.

The photo is an Italian passport.Provided by Francesca Tirico/Unsplash

Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum are mostly Middle Eastern countries, with Afghanistan holding the title of the world’s most powerful passport, with visa-free access to just 28 other countries and territories. Syria is not far behind, with access to only 29 locations, and Iraq, with 31 locations.

The world’s most powerful passport gives you the opportunity to visit 166 more countries without a visa compared to the least powerful passport. And even more worrying for countries near the bottom of the list, this gap has widened dramatically over the past two decades.

“The average number of destinations that travelers have visa-free access to has nearly doubled, from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024,” said Christian Henry & Partners Chairman H. Kaelin said. “However, the countries at the top of the rankings now have a staggering 166 destinations with visa-free access, while Afghanistan, the bottom of the rankings, has visa-free access to just 28 countries. .”

The US passport offers visa-free access to 188 destinations, ranking it 7th in the world along with Canada and Hungary. But 10 years ago, the United States had the most powerful passport in the world, and Britain highlights the shift in power relations in recent years.

The United Arab Emirates is in 11th place with 183 destinations visited, the fastest rise in the past 10 years. China has also risen significantly in the rankings over the past decade, offering access to almost twice as many destinations compared to 2014. However, since it currently offers access to 85 countries and territories, China’s ranking is quite low at 62nd place, which puts it on par with China. Papua New Guinea.

According to Henley & Partners, the top 10 most powerful passports in the world are:

According to Henley & Partners, the top 10 least powerful passports in the world are: