Singapore passport replaces Japan’s as world’s most powerful

Singapore has replaced Japan as the country with the world’s most powerful passport, according to the latest ranking published by Henley Passport Index on July 18.

It allows visa-free entry to 192 out of 227 global destinations, Straits Times reports.

In October 2021, Singapore and Japan shared the top spot in terms of passport holders being able to travel without a pre-approved visa to 192 destinations.

In the latest ranking, Japan, which was in the top spot for the last five years, dropped to third, with visa-free access to 189 destinations around the world. It shares its position with Austria, Finland, France, Luxembourg, South Korea, and Sweden.

Italy, Germany, and Spain are joint-second with visa-free access to 190 destinations, according to the list published by London-based immigration consultancy Henley & Partners.

At the bottom of the list is Afghanistan with easy access to 27 destinations. Yemen (99), Pakistan (100), Syria (101), and Iraq (102) round up the bottom five.

With historical data spanning 18 years, the Henley Passport Index is based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association. The index includes 199 different passports.

The Henley Passport Index is updated quarterly and is considered a standard reference tool when assessing where a passport ranks in terms of global mobility.