Singapore retains passport lead as mobility gap reaches record
The latest Henley Index shows average visa-free access has risen from 58 destinations in 2006 to 108, even as Afghanistan falls to just 22.
- Singapore retains its position as the world's most powerful passport, offering visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 192 destinations.
- The mobility gap between the most and least powerful passports has reached a record high, with a 170-destination difference between top-ranked Singapore and last-place Afghanistan (22 destinations).
- The United Arab Emirates, Japan, and South Korea are tied for the second position, each providing access to 188 destinations.
- Despite the widening gap, overall global travel freedom has nearly doubled in the last 20 years, with the average passport now providing access to 108 destinations compared to 58 in 2006.
Twenty years after the Henley Passport Index was launched, an average passport now provides access to 108 destinations without requiring a visa in advance, compared with 58 in 2006.
However, the gap between first and last place has reached a record 170 destinations.
The latest ranking, issued on 21 July as the second edition of 2026, puts Singapore first with visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 192 destinations.
Afghanistan remains last among the 199 passports assessed, with access to 22 destinations, down from 24 in January.
Singapore had also headed the January ranking.
The United Arab Emirates recorded the biggest rise since that edition, advancing three places to join Japan and South Korea in second place.
Passport holders from all three countries can enter 188 destinations.
Sweden ranks third with access to 187 destinations.
Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain share fourth place, each providing access to 186 destinations.
Austria, Greece, Malta, Portugal and Switzerland are jointly ranked fifth with access to 185 destinations.
Hungary, Poland and the United Kingdom occupy sixth place, while Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and four European countries share seventh.
Henley & Partners said global travel freedom had expanded widely over the past two decades.
When the index was introduced in 2006, the United States, Denmark and Finland held the strongest passports, each providing access to 130 destinations.
The expansion in travel access has coincided with a decline in global peacefulness for a 12th consecutive year, according to the latest Global Peace Index compiled by the Institute for Economics & Peace.
A comparison of the two rankings by Henley & Partners found a strong correlation between peacefulness and passport strength over the past 20 years.
Singapore ranks eighth on the Global Peace Index and first on the Henley Passport Index.
Japan, Switzerland, Ireland, Austria, Portugal, Finland, Denmark, New Zealand, Canada, Czechia and Malaysia also rank highly on both measures.
Afghanistan, Syria and Yemen, meanwhile, are among the world’s least peaceful countries and hold some of its weakest passports.
Israel, the United States, South Korea, Ukraine and Russia are exceptions, ranking highly for passport access but lower on the peace index.
Christian H. Kaelin, creator of the Henley Passport Index and chairman of Henley & Partners, said: “20 years of data show that passport power is one of the clearest expressions of a country’s geopolitical capital.
It reflects far more than peace or prosperity alone.
“The world’s strongest passports belong to nations that other countries want as partners – for trade, investment, security or cooperation. Mobility is ultimately a measure of the value other countries place on their relationship with you.”
Published twice a year, the Henley Passport Index measures the number of destinations passport holders can enter without obtaining a visa in advance.
It draws on official travel data maintained by the International Air Transport Association and used by airlines and governments worldwide to determine entry requirements.
Henley & Partners specialises in residence and citizenship planning.
Source: The Straits Times
