Japan and Singapore are still the world’s most powerful passports, a new global ranking has revealed, as their citizens can visit 192 countries visa-free. The ranking also reveals that Ukraine has a visa-free/visa-on-arrival score of 143, a ‘record high’ for the country, and now ranks in 34th place, climbing up one spot since January. Russia trails behind in 49th place, with a score of 117, falling from 46th earlier this year. Meanwhile, the UK passport has climbed the ranks from 6th place to 5th with a visa-free score of 187, while the US passport is one step behind in 6th place with a score of 186. Germany and South Korea remain in second place overall, with passport holders able to travel to 190 destinations without a visa. Third place is shared between Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, and Spain, with their passport holders able to access 189 destinations around the world without having to acquire a visa in advance. Nigeria and Ethiopia are both ranked 99 in overall, with passport holders able to travel to 45 destinations without a visa. Afghanistan remains at the bottom of the ranking with its nationals only able to access 26 destinations visa-free. According to The Henley Passport Index, the latest passport ranking shows that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has led to millions of Ukrainians fleeing to neighbouring countries, has had a ‘profound and perhaps irreversible impact on freedom of movement within the region as a new Iron Curtain descends’. In response to Russia’s actions, the EU and the US closed their airspaces to Russian air carriers, and travel bans were imposed on individual Russian citizens. According to a statement accompanying the 2022 passport index results, such restrictions are ‘effectively condemning the Russian passport to junk status throughout much of the developed world’. Russia’s sliding position in the ranking is likely to drop even further in the months to come, according to the report’s findings. Commenting on the ranking, Dr Christian H. Kaelin, Chairman of Henley & Partners and the inventor of the passport index concept, says: ‘As the value of the Russian passport rapidly declines and the world opens its doors to Ukrainians, it is abundantly clear that the passport you hold determines your fate and dramatically impacts the opportunities you have. ‘While it is impossible to predict what the world will look like in the shadow of a new Cold War, the latest index suggests that the divide between Russia and much of the Western world will only increase.’ THE HENLEY PASSPORT POWER INDEX GLOBAL RANKING 2022. 1 Japan 192 visa-free countries1 Singapore 1922 Germany 1902 South Korea 1903 Finland 1893 Italy 1893 Luxembourg 1893 Spain 1894 Austria 1884 Denmark 1884 Netherlands 188 4 Sweden 188 5 France 187 5 Ireland 1875 Portugal 1875 United Kingdom 187 6 Belgium 1866 New Zealand 1866 Norway 1866 Switzerland 186 6 United States 1867 Australia 1857 Canada 1857 Czech Republic 1857 Greece 1857 Malta 1858 Hungary 1839 Poland 1829 Lithuania 1829 Slovakia 18210 Estonia 18110 Latvia 18110 Slovenia 18111 Iceland 18012 Malaysia 17913 Liechtenstein 17814 Cyprus 17615 United Arab Emirates 17516 Chile 17416 Monaco 17416 Romania 17417 Bulgaria 17317 Croatia 17318 Hong Kong (SAR China) 17119 Argentina 17020 Brazil 16920 San Marino 16921 Andorra 16822 Brunei 16623 Barbados 16224 Israel 15924 Mexico 15925 St. Kitts and Nevis 15626 Bahamas 15527 Uruguay 15327 Vatican City 15328 Seychelles 15229 St. Vincent and the Grenadines 15130 Antigua and Barbuda 15030 Costa Rica 15030 Trinidad and Tobago 15031 Mauritius 14631 St. Lucia 14632 Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) 14533 Dominica 14433 Grenada 14433 Macao (SAR China) 14434 Ukraine 143 35 Panama 14236 Paraguay 141 37 Serbia 13638 Peru 135 39 El Salvador 134 40 Guatemala 13340 Honduras 13341 Colombia 13141 Samoa 13141 Solomon Islands 13142 Tonga 12942 Venezuela 12943 Nicaragua 12743 Tuvalu 12744 North Macedonia 12545 Kiribati 12345 Montenegro 12346 Marshall Islands 12247 Moldova 12048 Palau Islands 11949 Russian Federation 11749 Bosnia and Herzegovina 11749 Micronesia 11750 Georgia 11551 Albania 11452 Turkey 11053 South Africa 10454 Belize 10155 Qatar 9855 Vanuatu 98 56 Kuwait 95 57 Timor-Leste 93 58 Ecuador 9159 Nauru 8960 Fiji 8860 Maldives 8861 Guyana 8762 Botswana 8662 Jamaica 8663 Bahrain 8464 Papua New Guinea 8265 Oman 80 66 China 79 66 Bolivia 7966 Saudi Arabia 7966 Thailand 7967 Namibia 78 68 Belarus 77 68 Lesotho 7768 Suriname 7769 Kazakhstan 7570 eSwatini 7471 Malawi 7372 Kenya 7272 Tanzania 7273 Indonesia 7173 Tunisia 7173 Zambia 7174 Dominican Republic 7075 Azerbaijan 6976 Gambia 6877 Uganda 6778 Cape Verde Islands 6678 Philippines 6679 Armenia 6579 Zimbabwe 6580 Cuba 6480 Ghana 6480 Morocco 6481 Kyrgyzstan 6381 Sierra Leone 6382 Mozambique 6283 Benin 6183 Mongolia 6183 Rwanda 6184 India 6084 Sao Tome and Principe 6085 Mauritania 5985 Tajikistan 5986 Burkina Faso 5887 Gabon 5787 Uzbekistan 5788 Cote d’Ivoire 5688 Senegal 5689 Equatorial Guinea 5589 Madagascar 5590 Guinea 5490 Mali 5490 Togo 5490 Vietnam 5491 Bhutan 5391 Cambodia 5391 Chad 5391 Comores Islands 5391 Niger 5392 Algeria 5292 Central African Republic 5292 Egypt 5292 Guinea-Bissau 5292 Jordan 5292 Turkmenistan 5293 Burundi 5194 Angola 5094 Cameroon 5094 Laos 5095 Liberia 4996 Congo (Rep.) 4896 Haiti 4897 Djibouti 4798 Myanmar 4699 Ethiopia 4599 Nigeria 45100 South Sudan 44101 Eritrea 43102 Congo (Dem. Rep.) 42102 Iran 42103 Lebanon 41103 Sri Lanka 41103 Sudan 41104 Bangladesh 40104 Kosovo 40104 Libya 40105 North Korea 39106 Nepal 37106 Palestinian Territory 37107 Somalia 34108 Yemen 33109 Pakistan 31110 Syria 29111 Iraq 28112 Afghanistan 26 The post Japan and Singapore still have the most powerful passports in world as their citizens can visit 192 countries visa-free. appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.