The Most Powerful Passports

If you have a passport from Singapore, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, or Spain, congratulations! You hold one of the world’s most powerful passports, giving you the ability to travel to over 190 countries with little to no hassle. That means you can enter these countries without needing a visa or with visa-on-arrival access.

This information comes from the Henley Passport Index, a global ranking of the world’s most powerful passports. The ranking is based on how many countries a passport holder can visit without a visa. The Index relies on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and evaluates 199 passports and 277 travel destinations.

Singapore has held the top spot for the second year in a row, with visa-free access to 195 destinations — about 85% of the globe. France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Spain are tied in second place, each with visa-free access to 192 countries. Austria, Finland, Luxembourg, Ireland, the Netherlands, South Korea, and Sweden follow in third place, all offering access to 191 destinations.

The United States has moved up from 9th to 8th place this year. Back in 2015, it was ranked 2nd, while the United Kingdom held the number one spot.

Here’s a quick look at the 10 most powerful passports based on how many countries you can visit without a visa:

RankCountriesVisa-Free Access Score
1Singapore195
2France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain192
3Austria, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, South Korea, Sweden191
4Belgium, Denmark, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, United Kingdom190
5Australia, Portugal189
6Greece, Poland188
7Canada, Czechia, Hungary, Malta187
8United States186
9Estonia, Lithuania, United Arab Emirates185
10Iceland, Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia184
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