Henley Passport Index
This is a taste2travel post on the Henley Passport Index.
Latest Update – January 2025
Introduction
Updated: January 2025
Henley and Partners of London have just released their 2025 Henley Passport Index to reflect the current strength of all passports.
Index Stats
- 227 – Number of travel destinations that may require a visa
- 111 – Global average number of destinations travellers can access visa-free
- 195 – Number of destinations top-ranked passport can access visa-free
- 26 – Number of destinations bottom-ranked passport can access visa-free
Once again, Singapore tops the rankings offering visa-free travel to 195 of 227 countries and territories.
Japan occupies 2nd place offering visa-free travel to 193 of 227 countries and territories.
What exactly is the Passport Index?
The Henley Passport Index is the original, authoritative ranking of all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa.
For the past 19 years, the index has measured the strength of 199 different passports, and the visa-free access they enjoy to 227 travel destinations – both countries and territories.
A Measure of Passport Power
In 1984, Saint Kitts and Nevis, the smallest sovereign state in the Americas, passed a law offering citizenship to individuals who “made a substantial investment in the state” and were of good character and not a threat to the country.
Since then, other Caribbean nations such as Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, St. Lucia and Grenada have introduced their own citizenship programs which allow for those willing to pay a substantial fee the opportunity to easily acquire a 2nd passport.
For consulting firms in the residence and citizenship-by-investment industry, there is a need to rank the ‘quality’ or ‘power’ of different passports.
One such firm – Henley & Partners – publish the Henley Passport Index which is an annual ranking of all the passports of the world according to the number of countries their holders can travel to visa-free.
The ranking is based on data provided by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which maintains a comprehensive database of global travel information. The IATA data is augmented by in-house research conducted by Henley & Partners itself.
Index Mechanics
The index includes 199 different passports and 227 different travel destinations.
For each travel destination, if no visa is required for passport holders from a country or territory, then a score with value = 1 is created for that passport. A score with value = 1 is also applied if passport holders can obtain a visa on arrival, a visitor’s permit, or an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) when entering the destination.
These visa-types require no pre-departure government approval, because of the specific visa-waiver programs in place.
Where a visa is required, or where a passport holder has to obtain a government-approved electronic visa before departure, a score with value = 0 is assigned. A score with value = 0 is also assigned if passport holders need pre-departure government approval for a visa on arrival, a scenario not considered ‘visa-free’.
The total score for each passport is equal to the number of destinations for which no visa is required (value = 1), under the conditions defined above.
2025 Henley Passport Index
Strongest Passport
Once again – the Singapore passport is the world’s strongest passport in 2025.
Top Ten Strongest Passports
For the 2nd year running, the Singaporean passport is the world’s strongest passport, offering visa-free access to 195 (out of 227) countries and territories.
| Rank | Passport | Count |
| 1 | Singapore | 195 |
| 2 | Japan | 193 |
| 3 | Finland | 192 |
| France | ||
| Germany | ||
| Italy | ||
| South Korea | ||
| Spain | ||
| 4 | Austria | 191 |
| Denmark | ||
| Ireland | ||
| Luxembourg | ||
| Netherlands | ||
| Norway | ||
| Sweden | ||
| 5 | Belgium | 190 |
| New Zealand | ||
| Portugal | ||
| Switzerland | ||
| United Kingdom | ||
| 6 | Australia | 189 |
| Greece | ||
| 7 | Canada | 188 |
| Malta | ||
| Poland | ||
| 8 | Czechia | 187 |
| Hungary | ||
| 9 | Estonia | 186 |
| United States | ||
| 10 | Latvia | 185 |
| Lithuania | ||
| Slovenia | ||
| United Arab Emirates |
Weakest Passport
The Afghanistan passport is, again, the world’s weakest passport in 2024.
In 2024, the world’s weakest passport is the Afghanistan passport, which offers visa-free access to just 26 countries.
Bottom Ten Weakest Passports
At the other end of the index, the weakest passport belongs to Afghanistan, whose citizens can visit just 26 countries visa-free.
| Rank | Passport | Count |
| 96 | Iran | 44 |
| South Sudan | ||
| Sri Lanka | ||
| 97 | Sudan | 43 |
| 98 | Eritrea | 42 |
| 99 | North Korea | 41 |
| 100 | Bangladesh | 40 |
| Libya | ||
| Palestinian Territory | ||
| 101 | Nepal | 39 |
| 102 | Somalia | 35 |
| 103 | Pakistan | 33 |
| Yemen | ||
| 104 | Iraq | 31 |
| 105 | Syria | 27 |
| 106 | Afghanistan | 26 |
Online Passport Comparison
The Henley & Partners website allows you to compare the strength of your passport and to view the performance of your passport during the 18 years in which the index has been compiled.
How does your passport measure up?
That’s the end of this featured article on the Henley Passport Index.
If you wish to leave any feedback, you can do so using the form below or via the Contact page.
Safe Travels!
Darren
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Author: Darren McLean
Darren McLean is an Australian, full-time, digital nomad who has spent 37 years on a slow meander around the globe, visiting all seven continents, 189/ 193 UN countries and 242/ 251 UN+ countries and territories.
He founded taste2travel to pique one’s curiosity and inspire wanderlust.
