🔗 Share this article

In recent months, a video from a popular travel content creator expressing frustration over the limited power of the Indian passport gained massive traction on social media.

He mentioned that while nearby nations like Bhutan and Sri Lanka were more welcoming to Indian tourists, securing travel permits to travel to most Western and European countries continued to be difficult.

This dissatisfaction with India's poor passport strength found confirmation in recent Henley Passport Index, which placed India at position eighty-five among nearly two hundred nations, five spots lower compared to the previous year.

Officials in India have not issued a statement regarding these findings so far.

Countries like Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan with much smaller economies than India – which is the world's fifth biggest economy – hold better positions in the ranking at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, respectively.

In fact, the country's position in the past decade has hovered around the eighties, falling to the 90th spot in 2021. These rankings appear poor compared to other Asian countries such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore, all maintaining leading ranks.

Global Passport Power Measures

The power of a passport reflects a country's global influence and international standing. This leads to better mobility for passport holders, improving commercial and learning opportunities. A weak passport results in additional documentation, increased visa expenses, fewer travel privileges and longer waiting times for travel.

However, even with the decline in the rank, the count of nations providing visa-free travel to Indians has grown in the past decade or so.

For example, eight years ago – the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) assumed office – fifty-two nations provided visa-free travel for Indian passport holders and its passport ranked 76th in the ranking.

The following year, it tumbled to eighty-fifth place, then improved to 80th over the past two years, declining once more to the 85th position currently. At the same time, visa-free destinations for Indians increased from fifty-two eight years ago to 60 in 2023 and 62 in 2024.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The number of visa-free destinations this year (fifty-seven) is higher than what it was eight years ago (52), but the country's position during both periods is 85. So, why is that?

Analysts note that a major reason is the increasingly competitive landscape in international travel – meaning countries are forming more travel partnerships to benefit their citizens and their economies. As per a 2025 report, the global average count of countries travellers are able to access visa-free has almost doubled from 58 in 2006 to one hundred nine currently.

For example, China has increased the number of visa-free countries available to its citizens from fifty to eighty-two in the past decade. As a result, its rank in the ranking has improved from 94th to 60th in that same duration.

In comparison, India – previously positioned at seventy-seventh place during summer – fell to the 85th position this autumn following the loss of two nations.

Additional Factors Impacting Passport Power

An ex-diplomat from India says there are other factors that affect the strength of a country's passport, like economic and political conditions as well as its receptiveness to welcoming citizens from other countries.

For example, the US passport has dropped out from the top ten and now occupies the 12th position – a historic low – due to its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The former ambassador mentioned that during the seventies, Indian citizens had visa-free access to many Western and European countries, but that changed following Sikh separatist movement in the 1980s. Later political disturbances have further chipped away the country's reputation as a stable democracy.

"Numerous nations are growing more cautious regarding migrants," he stated. "India has a high number of citizens emigrating overseas or overstaying their visas and that interferes with the country's reputation."

Factors such as the security level a country's passport is and its immigration procedures also play a role to obtaining visa-free access to other countries.

Enhanced Security Measures

India's passport remains vulnerable to security threats. In 2024, law enforcement arrested 203 people for suspected passport and visa irregularities. The country also has complex immigration processes with lengthy timelines of visa processing.

The former ambassador says that technological advances, such as the newly introduced electronic passport or e-passport, can improve security and streamline immigration. This electronic document contains a microchip holding biometric information, making it harder to counterfeit or alter the document.

However, more diplomatic outreach and travel agreements remain key to boosting the global mobility of Indians and, by extension, India's passport ranking.