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Henley Passport Index 2024: Visa is the first requirement to visit any country in the world. This visa specifically requires a passport. Have you ever wondered how powerful this passport really is? How many people really know which countries in the world have the most powerful passports and which countries have the weakest passports in the world? The 2024 Passport Index has recently been released by Henley & Partners. In this index, the list of 104 most powerful and weakest countries of the world has been announced. According to the experts who prepared this list, till the year 2006, the world situation was such that visa-free travel to 58 countries could be done on the passports of the listed countries. With time it increased to 111. Now the situation has changed. In the recently released passport index, this figure has reached 194 countries.
European countries also top the passport index
According to experts, Japan and Singapore were at the forefront of this list for the last five years, but now European countries have also got the leading position. France tops the list of 194 countries for visa-free entry this year. After France, Germany, Italy and Spain also got the top position. After that, Japan and Singapore have also been at the top position. Passport holders of all these countries get visa free entry in 194 countries. In this case, these are the countries with the most powerful passports in the world. On the other hand, there are countries which are suffering from issues like war, civil war, terrorism and economic collapse. The passports of such countries have been declared as the weakest passport countries in the world. Afghanistan tops the list of countries with the weakest passports in the world. Afghanistan passport grants visa-free entry to only 28 countries. The situation is similar in Syria, Iraq, Pakistan and Yemen. All these countries are in the top five countries with the weakest passports.
Circumstances changed to increase tourism after Corona epidemic
Before the Corona pandemic, countries were a bit more strict and strict on the issue of passport and visa free entry. After the Corona epidemic, the travel situation changed globally and countries changed the rules after the tourism sector suffered a huge blow. China, which has always been under suspicion regarding the spread of Corona, took the initiative to provide visa-free entry to more than 50 countries, including some major European countries. After the Corona epidemic, many countries of the world followed these steps taken by China. After the Corona epidemic, the practice of visa-free entry was increased by European countries to keep the tourism sector moving. Subsequently, the world witnessed a wide-ranging change in the status and perception of visa-free entry. Talking about Germany and Singapore alone, it has given visa-free entry to 35 new countries in the last eight years.
The situation in Syria became very serious after the civil war.
Syria is also included in the list of countries with the weakest passports. It is at number two in this list. Its citizens enjoy visa-free access to 29 countries. This figure is not very good. Political and international geopolitical factors are playing a big role behind this. Experts have said that more than 22.5 million people have fled Syria since the civil war began in 2011. Apart from this, billions of dollars have been used by the Assad government in the drug and arms trade, due to which the economic and social condition of the country is also very bad. Then the condition of the citizens of Iraq is also the same. Iraqi citizens rebelling against the US have direct access to only 31 countries. Only 34 countries are ready to allow Pakistanis to enter their country without visa. Similarly, Yemenis are getting visa free entry in 35 countries. These are the top five countries in the list of countries with weak passports. 40 countries give direct entry to Nepali people while 42 countries give direct entry to North Korean people. Surprisingly, North Koreans rarely travel abroad, yet 42 countries are willing to allow them visa-free entry. Same is the situation in Libya and Palestine.
Biggest drop in Venezuela's ranking in a decade
Looking at the capacity and status of passports, there has been a major change in the passports of many countries in the last decade. Their globally strong passport list has seen a major decline. Venezuela is at the first place in the list of changes. The passport situation of this country began to deteriorate after the political, economic and other problems that began here after the end of 2014. Venezuelan passports have declined 21 places over the past decade. In 2024, it has fallen from 26th place to 47th. Nigeria's position has declined by 16 ranks while Yemen's position has also declined by 15 ranks. Türkiye and Syria also dropped 14 places respectively due to global factors. Russia, which drew global outrage for its war with Ukraine, also fell 13 points. The surprising thing is that Ukraine has benefited from this. Some countries of the world allow Ukrainian citizens to enter their countries with visa exemptions and minor discounts, but the attitude towards Russians has been toughened. Senegal has also dropped 13 places. Apart from this, South Africa and Mali have also lost 12 ranks in the global list.
European countries lag behind America and Britain in terms of reform
According to passport and visa experts, six countries have topped the visa-free entry list this year, while four countries are at the second position. Thus a total of ten countries have been included in only two orders. There are six types of special treaties made by countries that allow more visa-free entry. This treaty was ranked at the top by France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore and Spain. According to experts, there was a time when US and UK passport holders were dominant. Tourists from these two countries used to get many facilities. Now the situation has changed. Now America and Britain are lagging behind. The reforms carried out by small countries of Europe have made them leaders. The UK is now fourth in the list of strongest passports for visa-free entry, while the US has dropped to seventh. If counted directly, Britain is at 18th and America at 28th. This is because there is more than one country above each location. Countries like Denmark, Ireland, Norway, New Zealand, Canada, Australia, Poland have gone far ahead of America.
Americans will have to get a visa to travel to Europe from 2025
Recent reforms and changes in the rules related to visa and passport have created a new situation. Until now, US citizens did not require a visa to travel to all European countries. Now that situation has reversed. Americans will need a visa to travel to Europe starting in 2025. According to experts, this work will be completed in a few hours or days, but now the process will have to be completed to get the visa. Americans will not get visa free entry. People from Canada, Mexico and South America will also have to apply for a visa. One good thing is that the visa issued will be valid for three years. On the other hand, Indonesia is considering giving visa free entry to more than 20 countries. These steps are being taken to promote the tourism sector. Especially this will be the second country in Asia which is thinking of providing this facility to China. Singapore has given visa-free entry facility to Chinese citizens. Thailand and Malaysia also seem to be taking new steps to further develop tourism.
India's situation has seen a steady decline since 2006
If we talk about visa free entry at the global level, India's position is continuously deteriorating. Data from 2006 to 2024 show that India's status and level is continuously declining. In 2006, India was at 71st position in terms of passports, whereas in 2024, India has come to 85th position. There is discussion among experts that India, which is among the most powerful countries in Asia, is far behind China in the matter of passports. India is on its way to becoming an economic superpower, India is going through a revolution, India is becoming a global leader, but when it comes to Indians traveling abroad, only 62 countries allow them visa-free entry. Allow. In the current situation, a total of 206 countries were studied, out of which 164 countries did not allow visa-free entry for Indians. About 30 countries provide visa on arrival facility. On the other hand, 26 countries have provided e-Visa facility. As far as China is concerned, it is at 64th place in this list. Its citizens are being given visa free entry to 86 countries.
Afghans are directly welcomed in only 12 percent of countries
When it comes to the weakest passports in the world, countries like Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Pakistan and Yemen remain in the headlines. The citizens of these countries are suffering a lot due to terrorism, poor economic policy, lack of talent, civil war situation, weak politics and cross border conflicts. Afghanistan tops the list of weakest passports. It comes at number 104 in the global list of passport issuances. Its citizens enjoy visa-free entry into only 28 countries. Only 12 percent of the world's countries with visa-free entry welcome them. According to experts, this difference is very big. On one hand, 85 percent of the countries in the world provide visa-free entry to Japan, but the figure for Afghanistan is very small. Experts are also saying that political factor is also playing a big role behind this. After the reins of Afghanistan came into the hands of Taliban in 2021, there has been a big change in the global mentality regarding this.
