Singapore passport now the world's 'most powerful,' PH moves up to 74th spot for Q3 2023
Singapore now has the most powerful passport in the world, taking over Japan which managed to stay at the top of the global passport power ranking for five years.
The Henley Passport Index for the third quarter of 2023 was released on July 18, where the Singapore passport ranked first as it allows holders visa-free entry to 192 destinations out of 227 across the globe.
Taking second place are Germany, Italy, and Spain with visa-free access to 190 countries, followed by Austria, Finland, France, Japan, Luxembourg, South Korea, and Sweden with visa-free access to 189 countries.
The Philippine passport, meanwhile, is now the 74th most powerful in the world after improving from its 78th spot in January, with visa-free access to 66 countries, including Armenia, Brazil, Fiji, Singapore, and Vietnam.
Countries requiring visa upon entry for PH passport holders include Switzerland, Norway, Greece, and Finland.
According to Dr. Christian H. Kaelin, Chairman of Henley & Partners and the inventor of the passport index concept, only eight countries have less visa-free access today such as North Korea, Somalia, and Pakistan.
“Far more than just a travel document that defines our freedom of movement, a strong passport also provides significant financial freedoms in terms of international investment and business opportunities,” Dr. Kaelin said.
The results were based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) as gathered by the Henley & Partners research department.
Each passport is ranked according to the total number of destinations that a holder can access visa-free.
For each travel destination where no visa is required, a score of one is given for that passport.