Japanese passport allows holders visa-free entry to 193 countries, which makes it the most powerful passport in the world - according to the latest Henley Passport Index. Holders of Polish passports - ranked 10th in the index - can enter 182 countries without visas.
According to the latest edition of the strongest passports index by Henley & Partners, passports issued by Asian countries are the most powerful. Japanese passport is accepted by 193 countries, whereas Singaporean and South Korean - by 192. Holders of German and Spanish passports can enter the territory of 190 states. Further down the list are more Western European countries.
186 countries allow visa-free entry to its territories to the holders of New Zealand and U.S. passports, whereas people in posession of Australian and Canadian documents can enter 185 states.
Polish passport in the top 10
Polish passport was ranked 10th in the index published Henley & Partners, along with Slovak and Lithuanian documents. Holders of these passport can enter 182 countries without visas. As most of the top spots on the list are taken by more than one country, citizens of as many as 27 countries are in a more comfortable travel situation than the Poles, Slovaks and Lithuanians.
Poles are required to have a visa in order to enter only one European country - Russia. Poles travelling to Africa can enter only a few countries of that continent without visas, incuding Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and South Africa. Polish citizens also need a visa to enter most of Asian countries such as Iran, South Korea, India or China. Polish passport alone is also not enough to enter the territory of Australia.
Not so long ago, Poles had been required to have a visa in order to enter the Unites States, but this duty was lifted in the fall of 2019.
The least powerful passports
Afghan passport is the least powerful in the index, as it allows its holders to enter only 27 countries. Slightly stronger are passport issued by Iraq (29 countries), Syrian (30) and Pakistani (32). Despite the country's isolation from the rest of the world, North Korean passport is enough to enter 40 countries without a visa.
With historical data spanning 17 years, the Henley Passport Index is the only one of its kind based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Authority (IATA).
The index includes 199 different passports and 227 different travel destinations. Updated quarterly, the Henley Passport Index is considered the standard reference tool for global citizens and sovereign states when assessing where a passport ranks on the global mobility spectrum.
10 most powerful passports
1. Japan (193*) 2. Singapour, South Korea (192) 3. Germany, Spain (190) 4. Finland, Italy, Luxembourg (189) 5. Austria, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden (188) 6. France, Ireland, Portugal, United Kingdom (187) 7. Belgium, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, United States (186) 8. Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, Greece, Malta (185) 9. Hungary (183) 10. Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia (182)
*number of countries allowing holders of a given passport visa-free entry into its territory
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, Henley & Partners
Źródło zdjęcia głównego: Shutterstock