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Singapore now has the world’s most powerful passport, according to Arton Capital’s Passport Index, with its 3.4 million holders able to visit 159 countries without a visa or with a visa on arrival. Other Asian countries in the top 20 include South Korea, Japan and Malaysia. Western European countries, which used to offer maximum mobility, have slipped down the rankings. Germany is now second, followed by Sweden and South Korea. Afghanistan is the least powerful passport, with only 22 countries granting visa-free entry to its citizens.
While fear of terrorism has led to more restrictive borders in many Western countries, some Asian countries have embraced a more relaxed philosophy on foreign travel. In fact, for the first time ever, an Asian country has the most “powerful” passport in the world. According to Arton Capital’s Passport Index, Singapore’s 3.4 million passport holders can easily visit 159 countries, either without a visa or simply by obtaining a visa on arrival.
Passport, please:
South Korea, Japan and Malaysia round out the other Asian countries in the top 20 of the passport index. The Passport Index ranks access from passports issued by 193 United Nations member countries and six territories.
Passports issued by Western European countries – such as Germany, Sweden, Denmark and Switzerland – used to offer maximum mobility, but nationalist sentiments have gradually changed that.
Germany ranks second on the index with a score of 158 countries, followed by Sweden and South Korea with 157. Afghanistan is the least powerful: only 22 countries grant visa-free entry to Afghan citizens.
