Discover the 25 Best Passports in the World as of January 2025

Note: This article was originally published October 25, 2019. We update it frequently to reflect changes in the Henley Global Passport Index.

How many doors can your passport open for you? Henley & Partners, a London multinational specialized in citizenship and residency issues, updated its Global Passport Index, a ranking of the best passports in the world. Each month, the firm bases its list on the number of destinations that each country’s passport allows to visit without a visa.

In the January 2025 report, Singapore rose as the world’s most powerful passport, with 195 authorized countries. The Asian nation of Japan followed in second place with 193 countries. Third place was a tie between France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Finland, and South Korea, all with 192 countries each. Sweden, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Ireland, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands came in fourth with 191 countries.

The Keys to the World

Every frequent traveler knows the importance of having a passport to visit destinations outside their country of residence. There are initiatives under development that could allow travel abroad without documentation while minimizing security risks. Until these are implemented, a passport is the top requirement for anyone who wishes to cross borders legally.

Also, an experienced tourist knows that in many cases their passport is not enough. Many nations require visas or other authorizations to cross their borders. Thanks to migratory agreements between nations, citizens of certain countries can travel to a large number of territories with just their passport.

What Makes a Good Passport?

This annual Henley & Partners study reveals that the level of development or supremacy projected by a global power is not enough to make their passport better or worse than any other. Above all else, good relations between countries weighs as much or more in that regard. This explains how Japan and Singapore outperformed other great nations such as Belgium, Canada, the United States, England and Switzerland.

The United States, for its part, occupies the top 10 list as the ninth best passport with 186 countries, this despite entry requirement changes for North Americans in Brazil. No Latin American nation reached the top 10. Chile’s passport, the most powerful in the region, ranked sixteenth with 176 countries. The next most powerful passports in Latin America, Argentina (172 countries) and Brazil (172 countries), reached positions 17th and 18th, respectively. The Dominican Republic occupied 67th place with 75 authorized countries.

The 25 Best Passports in the World

These are the countries whose passports occupy the top 25 spots in the Global Passport Index (with number of nations authorized for visa-free travel):

The 10 Least Powerful Passports in the World

Passports issued by the following nations have the fewest countries authorized for travel without a visa, according to the Index:

About Henley & Partners and the Global Passport Index

The Global Passport Index collects the results obtained by the Henley & Partners research team, as well as exclusive data provided by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), to determine the best passports in the world.

It is worth mentioning that the Global Passport Index puts countries that issue visas or electronic authorizations to all passengers at their port of entry in the same group as those without a visa requirement.

Other companies besides Henley & Partners manage their own passport rankings. For example, financial advisory firm Arton Capital has their own Passport Index which ranks travel documents by global rank, individual rank and mobility score.

Didn’t see your passport among the best or worst? Check back soon since we will update our list every time Henley & Partners updates theirs. Can’t wait? Visit the official Global Passport Index website to download the full list or search for passports by country.