In a major shake-up of the quarterly rankings of the world’s most powerful passports, an unprecedented six countries share the top spot for the most sought-after travel documents in 2024.
Citizens of France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore, and Spain can now access an impressive 194 destinations visa-free or with visa-on-arrival – the highest number recorded since the Henley Passport Index began tracking global travel freedoms 19 years ago. This index is curated by the London-based global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners, utilising exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Historically, Japan and Singapore have held the No.1 position for the past five years, but the new ranking represents a significant rise for Europe. Finland and Sweden, alongside South Korea, claim second place with visa-free access to 193 destinations, while Austria, Denmark, Ireland, and the Netherlands are in third place with access to 192 destinations.
Belgium, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, and the United Kingdom are positioned at No. 4, followed by Greece, Malta, and Switzerland at No. 5.
Australia and New Zealand have improved their standings to No. 6, along with Czechia and Poland. The United States and Canada are tied in seventh place with Hungary, offering visa-free access to 188 destinations. The United Arab Emirates has seen the most significant climb over the past decade, adding 106 destinations since 2014, and now holds the 11th position.
Christian H. Kaelin, chairman of Henley & Partners and creator of the passport index, remarked that although the general trend over the past two decades has been towards greater travel freedom, the disparity between the top and bottom of the index is more pronounced than ever.
“The average number of destinations travellers can access visa-free has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024,” said Kaelin. “However, the top-ranked countries can travel to 166 more destinations visa-free than Afghanistan, which ranks at the bottom with access to just 28 countries.” Syria follows with visa-free access to 29 destinations, Iraq can access 31, and Pakistan 34.
Henley & Partners’ list is one of several indexes created by financial firms to rank global passports based on the access they provide. Arton Capital’s Passport Index, which considers the passports of 193 United Nations member countries and six territories (Taiwan, Macao, Hong Kong, Kosovo, the Palestinian territories, and the Vatican), is updated in real-time throughout the year by monitoring government portals. It serves as a tool “for people who travel, providing accurate, simple-to-access information for their travel needs,” as stated by Arton Capital’s founder Armand Arton to CNN in 2022.
Arton’s Global Passport Power Rank 2024 places the United Arab Emirates at the top, with a visa-free/visa-on-arrival score of 180. The second place is held by five European countries: Germany, Spain, France, Italy, and the Netherlands. Sweden, Finland, Luxembourg, Austria, and Switzerland occupy the third spot, while the UK and the US rank 5th and 6th respectively.
Arton Capital’s 2023 summary highlighted the increase in global mobility gains by regional hubs such as Hong Kong, Macao, and Monaco, and identified Albania as its “rising star” due to increased demand for its workforce, making it easier for Albanians to live and work abroad.
The world’s most powerful passports for 2024:
- 194 destinations: France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore, Spain
- 193 destinations: Finland, South Korea, Sweden
- 192 destinations: Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands
- 191 destinations: Belgium, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, United Kingdom
- 190 destinations: Greece, Malta, Switzerland
- 189 destinations: Czech Republic, New Zealand, Poland
- 188 destinations: Canada, Hungary, United States
- 187 destinations: Estonia, Lithuania
- 186 destinations: Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia
- 185 destinations: Iceland