Each year, the Henley Passport Index presents its ranking of passports according to the number of countries their holders can enter without the bother of applying for a visa in advance.
The renowned London-based consultancy, which helps governments develop citizenship-by-investment programs, bases the ranking on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and additional in-house research. In this year’s index, all of the top three places are occupied by Asian passports.
The Japanese passport has once again been confirmed as the world’s best travel document for the third year running. Travellers from the Japanese archipelago can visit no fewer than 191 countries around the world without having to apply for a prior visa, reports the 2020 edition of the Henley Passport Index, published on Tuesday (yesterday).
It is also worth noting that Taiwan has gone from 69th to 32nd place in the space of ten years with its passport, which now allows holders to visit 146 countries without a prior visa. And let’s not forget that Malaysian (178) and Hong Kong (169) passports are ranked above the Taiwanese document.
However, China is ranked in 72nd place, with a passport that only offers direct access to 71 countries, putting it on a par with Indonesian and Kenyan travel documents.
In Europe, Germany dominates the rankings, coming in third place, with its “reisepass,” which allows travelers to discover 189 countries without prior visits to their embassies. Already the best-placed European passport in 2019, the German document is ranked above the Italian “passaporto” and the Finnish “passi pass,” which allow for rapid access to 188 countries.
The document which has opened the door to the largest number of new territories in ten years is the United Arab Emirates passport, which is placed 18th in the ranking and allows for easy access to 171 countries.
At the bottom of the table, the Afghan passport, which only offers trouble-free travel to 26 countries, is the world’s least effective.
