In 2024, the world has seen a series of significant changes in the ranking, but Nordic passports are still in the first 5 most powerful in the world.
This ranking is based on the number of destinations that passport holders can access without the need for a visa.
Top-Ranked Passports
Six countries have earned the title of most powerful passports in 2024, all granting visa-free travel to 194 out of 227 destinations. Four EU member states now share the crown with Singapore and Japan as the number one passport in the Henley Passport Index quarterly.
They are the biggest economies in EU: Spain, Germany, France, and Italy.
Nordic Passports are 2nd, 3rd and 4th
In second place are countries like South Korea, Finland, and Sweden with visa-free access to 193 destinations. Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Austria placed third. The United Kingdom has risen two positions to fourth place, together with Norway.
Australia and New Zealand placed sixth, while the United States maintained their 7th place, according to Henley’s rankings.
Global Trends
The general trend shown in the rankings has been towards greater travel freedom, with the average number of destinations that travelers can access without a visa almost doubling from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024.
However, the global mobility gap between those at the top and bottom of the index has become “wider than ever”. For example, the highest-ranked passports allow travel to 166 more destinations without a visa compared to Afghanistan, which has access to only 28 countries and is last in the ranking.
Notable Improvements
The United Arab Emirates has been the “best climber” of the index in the last decade, jumping from 55th place in 2014 to 11th position. Other notable improvements in mobility include Ukraine and China, which have each risen two positions in the last year.
