Post on 13-Mar-2020
The Henley Passport Index Q4 Update
October 2019
2 3The information provided here reflects the 2019 Henley Passport Index ranking on 1 October 2019.
Henley Passport Index Q4: October 2019
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About the Henley Passport Index
The Henley Passport Index is the original and most authoritative ranking of all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa. The index includes 199 passports and 227 travel destinations, giving users the most extensive and reliable information about the global access their passport affords them. With historical data spanning 14 years and regularly updated expert analysis on the latest shifts in passport rankings, the index is an invaluable resource for global citizens and the standard reference tool for governments in this field.
Robust, reliable, and accurate
The ranking is based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which maintains the world’s largest and most accurate database of travel information, and enhanced by continuous research by the Henley & Partners Research Department.
The index’s scoring system was developed with the goal of giving users a nuanced, practical, and reliable overview of their passport’s power. Each passport is scored on the total number of destinations that the holder can access visa-free. For each travel destination, if no visa is required for passport holders, then a score of 1 is created for that passport. This also applies if passport holders can obtain a visa on arrival, a visitor’s permit, or an electronic travel authority (ETA) upon entry.
Where a visa is required, or where a passport holder must apply for a government-approved electronic visa (e-Visa) before departure, a score of 0 is assigned. The same applies if they need pre-departure approval for a visa on arrival.
Explore the worldAs well as allowing users to discover the strength of their own passports, henleypassportindex.com enables users to compare their passport to others, looking at differences in access and learning where their passport ranks regionally as well as globally. It also allows users to explore 14 years’ worth of historical data, discovering how the strength of their passport has changed over the years, and looking at top climbers and fallers on the index.
4 5The information provided here reflects the 2019 Henley Passport Index ranking on 1 October 2019.
Henley Passport Index Q4: October 2019
Rank Passport Score
Egypt
Haiti
Jordan
Laos
93 Burundi 48
Liberia
94 Congo (Rep.) 47
95 Djibouti 46
Myanmar
Nigeria
96 Sri Lanka 43
97 Congo (Dem. Rep.) 42
Ethiopia
South Sudan
98 Kosovo 41
99 Bangladesh 40
Eritrea
Iran
100 Lebanon 39
North Korea
101 Nepal 38
102 Libya 37
Palestinian Territory
Sudan
103 Yemen 33
104 Pakistan 31
Somalia
105 Syria 29
106 Iraq 27
107 Afghanistan 25
34 Panama 140
35 Dominica 137
36 Peru 135
37 El Salvador 134
Honduras
38 Guatemala 132
Venezuela
39 Samoa 131
Serbia
40 Solomon Islands 130
Vanuatu
41 Nicaragua 128
42 Tuvalu 127
43 Colombia 126
Ukraine
44 Tonga 125
45 North Macedonia 123
46 Kiribati 122
Marshall Islands
Montenegro
47 Micronesia 119
Moldova
Palau Islands
48 Russian Federation 117
49 Bosnia and Herzegovina 116
50 Georgia 114
51 Albania 113
52 Turkey 112
53 South Africa 100
54 Belize 99
55 Timor-Leste 95
56 Kuwait 93
57 Qatar 92
58 Ecuador 91
Malaysia
13 Chile 174
Poland
14 Cyprus 173
Monaco
15 United Arab Emirates 172
16 Romania 171
17 Argentina 170
Brazil
Bulgaria
18 Croatia 168
Hong Kong (SAR China)
19 San Marino 167
20 Andorra 166
21 Brunei 165
22 Barbados 159
Israel
23 Mexico 158
24 Bahamas 154
St. Kitts and Nevis
25 Uruguay 153
26 Seychelles 151
27 Costa Rica 150
28 Antigua and Barbuda 149
29 Trinidad and Tobago 148
Vatican City
30 Mauritius 146
31 St. Lucia 145
St. Vincent and the
Grenadines
Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)
32 Grenada 142
Paraguay
33 Macao (SAR China) 141
79 Sierra Leone 63
80 Benin 62
Kyrgyzstan
Mongolia
Morocco
81 Armenia 60
Mozambique
Sao Tome and Principe
82 India 59
83 Burkina Faso 58
Mauritania
84 Cote d'Ivoire 57
Rwanda
Tajikistan
85 Gabon 56
Guinea
Uzbekistan
86 Senegal 55
Togo
87 Guinea-Bissau 54
Madagascar
Mali
Niger
88 Cambodia 53
Chad
Comores Islands
89 Bhutan 52
Equatorial Guinea
90 Central African Republic 51
Turkmenistan
Vietnam
91 Algeria 50
92 Angola 49
Cameroon
59 Fiji 88
60 Guyana 87
Nauru
61 Jamaica 84
Maldives
62 Botswana 83
Papua New Guinea
63 Bahrain 81
64 Oman 79
65 Bolivia 78
Suriname
66 Thailand 77
67 Namibia 76
68 Belarus 75
Kazakhstan
69 Lesotho 74
Saudi Arabia
70 eSwatini 73
71 Malawi 72
72 China 71
Kenya
73 Indonesia 70
Zambia
74 Gambia 69
75 Tanzania 68
Tunisia
76 Azerbaijan 66
Cape Verde Islands
Uganda
77 Cuba 65
Ghana
Philippines
78 Dominican Republic 64
Zimbabwe
1 Japan 190
Singapore
2 Finland 188
Germany
South Korea
3 Denmark 187
Italy
Luxembourg
4 France 186
Spain
Sweden
5 Austria 185
Netherlands
Portugal
6 Belgium 184
Canada
Greece
Ireland
Norway
Switzerland
United Kingdom
United States
7 Czech Republic 183
Malta
8 New Zealand 182
9 Australia 181
Lithuania
Slovakia
10 Hungary 180
Iceland
Latvia
Slovenia
11 Estonia 179
12 Liechtenstein 177
6 7The information provided here reflects the 2019 Henley Passport Index ranking on 1 October 2019.
Henley Passport Index Q4: October 2019
Q4 Insights and Analysis: It’s ‘the Age of Asia’ When it Comes to Passport Power
As the global economy transforms and centers of power shift, Asia’s dominance appears to be unfaltering. Entering into the final quarter of 2019, Japan and Singapore retain a firm hold on first place on the Henley Passport Index, each with a visa-free or visa-on-arrival score of 190 out of a maximum 227. For most of the index’s 14-year history, the top spot has been held by a European country or by the US. However, this trend shifted dramatically in 2018, with Asian countries now firmly established as world leaders when it comes to both global economic activity and global mobility.
With visa-free or visa-on-arrival scores of 188, Finland, Germany, and South Korea remain in 2nd place, while Denmark, Italy, and Luxembourg are in 3rd place, with citizens of those countries now able to access 187 destinations worldwide without requiring a visa in advance. With a score of 184, the UK and the US remain in joint 6th place — the lowest position either country has held since 2010 and a significant drop from their 1st-place ranking in 2014. Both Russia and China have made small gains over the past three months: Russia is up three places and now ranks 48th on the index with a score of 117, and China has inched up two places and now sits on 72nd place with a score of 71.
While the positions on the index’s top 10 have remained relatively stable since the last update in July, there have been some striking shifts further down the ranking. Most dramatically, the UAE has climbed an extraordinary five places over the last three months (and 46 places over the past decade) and now sits in 15th place, with UAE passport holders able to access 172 destinations without a prior visa. Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan remain at the bottom of the ranking, with visa-free or visa-on-arrival scores of just 29, 27, and 25, respectively.
“Our ongoing research has shown us that when we are talking about ‘passport power’, we are discussing more than simply the destinations a holder can travel to without acquiring a visa in advance. Often, there is a strong correlation between visa freedom and other benefits such as business and investment freedom, independence of the judiciary, fiscal health, and property rights.”
“Regarding the connections between visa freedom and economic freedom, countries with investment migration programs are among the best examples. Malta, for instance, has one of the strongest passports in the world and is performing exceedingly well in terms of fiscal health. The statistics speak for themselves, as does the ongoing popularity of the investment migration industry with both wealthy clients and sovereign states.”
“The future of immigration policy in the UK does not depend fundamentally on whether or not the UK leaves the EU with a deal. In either scenario, there will be a ‘transitional period’ until at least December 2020, in which free movement of EU citizens to the UK will continue more or less as it operates today. After that, the UK is expected to introduce a new immigration system that treats EU and non-EU citizens in the same way. The full details of this system have not yet been announced, but it will make long-term settlement much harder for EU citizens. UK citizens who want to move to EU countries after Brexit will also face more restrictive immigration regimes.”
“Russia’s recent moves to ease visa restrictions should help increase the inflow of tourists and investors and improve Russia’s image beyond its borders, but issuing visas is usually a matter of reciprocity between states, so the response from other countries may hamper or stimulate the process of opening Russia to foreign visitors.”
“For more than a year, former UK foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt has been saying that Asia would need to be a pillar of the country’s post-Brexit global economic policy. If indeed the UK is able to advance more free trade in services with Asian countries, this will require more British citizens to spend time in Asia to generate business across sectors such as finance, advisory, education, and others. At present, however, Asian markets have not prioritized individual free trade agreements with the UK over their current negotiations with the EU.”
“The power of the UAE passport depicts a nation that is attempting to position itself as a prominent player in the region. While the UAE may not be able to compete with Saudi Arabia — the regional hegemon — in terms of military strength and economic power, the projection of its soft power has become uncontested in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), making the UAE an embodiment of inspiration for other GCC countries.”
“Sub-Saharan Africa continues to make tentative progress in terms of improving its accessibility. Sierra Leone and Namibia are the latest countries to ease visa restrictions as a means of attracting foreign investment, revenue, and skillsets to augment their economic development goals.”
Dr. Christian H. Kaelin: Visa Freedom and Economic Freedom
Chairman of Henley & Partners
Dr. Juerg Steffen: Investment Migration
CEO of Henley & Partners
Dr. Madeleine Sumption: Brexit and the EU
Director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford
Dr. Marina Soroka: Russia
Independent scholar and published author with expertise in the history of European international relations
Dr. Parag Khanna: Brexit and Asia
Founder and Managing Partner of FutureMap
Lorraine Charles: UAE
Research Associate at the University of Cambridge’s Centre for Business Research
Ryan Cummings: Sub-Saharan Africa
Director at Signal Risk and independent consultant to international news outlets, publications, and think tanks
8 9The information provided here reflects the 2019 Henley Passport Index ranking on 1 October 2019.
Henley Passport Index Q4: October 2019
Weakest Passports in Q4 2019Strongest Passports in Q4 2019
Japan
France
Austria
Germany
Denmark
Finland
Italy
Sweden
Portugal
South Korea Somalia
Singapore
Spain
Netherlands
Luxembourg
Visa-free access to 190 destinations
Visa-free access to 188 destinations
Visa-free access to 187 destinations
Visa-free access to 186 destinations
Visa-free access to 185 destinations
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Yemen
Iraq
Afghanistan
Syria
Visa-free access to 33 destinations
Visa-free access to 31 destinations
Visa-free access to 29 destinations
Visa-free access to 27 destinations
Visa-free access to 25 destinations
103rd
104th
105th
106th
107th
Moving into the fourth quarter of 2019, Japan and Singapore remain in joint top spot on the Henley Passport Index, with a visa-free or visa-on-arrival score of 190. Finland, Germany, and South Korea hold joint second place, with citizens of those countries able to access 188 destinations around the world without a prior visa.
At the other end of the global mobility spectrum, the Afghan passport remains the world’s weakest, in 107th
place, with a visa-free or visa-on-arrival score of just 25.
This infographic shows the countries that occupy the highest and lowest ranks on the Henley Passport Index. In certain cases, a rank is shared by multiple countries if these countries all have the same level of visa-free or visa-on-arrival access.
Pakistan
10 11The information provided here reflects the 2019 Henley Passport Index ranking on 1 October 2019.
Henley Passport Index Q4: October 2019
1–10
11–20
21-30
31-60
61–90
91–107
Passport rank
Passport Power Worldwide
This map shows the differences in relative passport power on a global scale, with light gray used to indicate the passports with the lowest visa-free or visa-on-arrival score and dark blue used to indicate the passports with the highest score.
12 13The information provided here reflects the 2019 Henley Passport Index ranking on 1 October 2019.
Henley Passport Index Q4: October 2019
Mali
This graph shows the countries that have climbed the highest up the Henley Passport Index rankings over the past decade, as well as those that have fallen most sharply over that period.
Biggest Climbers Since 2009
61
15
76
51
54
31
62
39
72
49
64
43
75
55
2009
2019
+46
+25 +23 +23+21
+23+20
United Arab Emirates
Albania Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)
Rank
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Serbia Timor-Leste
Biggest Fallers Since 2009
Nigeria Bangladesh Syria Gambia Senegal
95
67
-28 -26-23 -22-22 -22
-26
Sierra Leone
79
53
99
73
105
82
74
52
86
64
87
65
2019
2009
Rank
Biggest Climbers and Fallers on the Henley Passport Index: 2009 to 2019
Colombia
14 15The information provided here reflects the 2019 Henley Passport Index ranking on 1 October 2019.
Henley Passport Index Q4: October 2019
The Link between Visa Freedom and Economic Freedom
Using historic data from the Henley Passport Index and the Index of Economic Freedom, political science researchers Uğur Altundal and Ömer Zarpli of Syracuse University and the University of Pittsburgh, respectively, found a strongly positive connection between visa freedom and a variety of indicators of economic freedom, including foreign direct investment inflows, property rights, tax burden, and investment freedom.
Looking at the latest rankings from the Henley Passport Index, Altundal and Zarpli observed that “countries that have higher visa scores also rank higher in economic freedom, especially in investment, financial, and business freedom”. One especially striking example of this positive correlation is Singapore, which ranks highest in nearly all economic indicators and holds the top spot on the Henley Passport Index.
Japan Malta
Eritrea
Singapore Australia
Afghanistan
Austria
UAE
Canada
ChinaRussia
UK
SudanSouth Africa
50
100
150
200
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Hen
ley
& P
artn
ers
Pass
port
Sco
re 2
019
Heritage Foundation Index of Economic Freedom Score 2019
16 17The information provided here reflects the 2019 Henley Passport Index ranking on 1 October 2019.
Henley Passport Index Q4: October 2019
Henley & Partners is the global leader in residence and citizenship planning. Each year, hundreds of wealthy individuals and their advisors rely on our expertise and experience in this area. The firm’s highly qualified professionals work together as one team in over 30 offices worldwide.
The concept of residence and citizenship planning was created by Henley & Partners in the 1990s. As globalization has expanded, residence and citizenship have become topics of significant interest among the increasing number of internationally mobile entrepreneurs and investors whom we proudly serve every day.
The firm also runs a leading government advisory practice that has raised more than USD 8 billion in foreign direct investment. Trusted by governments, the firm has been involved in strategic consulting and in the design, set-up, and operation of the world’s most successful residence and citizenship programs.
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