Henley Passport Index: Japan and Singapore hold the first rank on the passport index
- India’s rank has slipped by six places from last year to 90 on the Henley Passport Index, which lists the world’s most travel-friendly passports.
- The Henley Passport Index comes at a time when countries are easing travel rules for international visitors after almost two years since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
- The index ranks the passports of countries according to the number of destinations their holders can visit without a prior visa. The rankings are based on the analysis of data provided by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
- "* IATA Travel Pass: The global trade body representing airlines (The International Air Transport Association) is developing an app called IATA Travel Pass that will provide airlines and other aviation industry stakeholders with a common platform to check for the proof of vaccination and its validity.
- CommonPass: Non-profit Commons Project has been trying out an app called CommonPass, which contains a passenger’s vaccination record.
Global Rankings:
- Japan and Singapore stood at the top of this year’s list, with their passport holders allowed to travel visa-free to 192 countries, while South Korea and Germany share the second position.
- For the third consecutive year, Japan has secured the top position.
- Meanwhile, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, and Yemen are among the least powerful.
India’s Performance:
- India fell down to the 90th position, with its passport holders allowed to travel visa-free to 58 countries.
- India shares the rank with Tajikistan and Burkina Faso.
- India was ranked 85th in the January 2021’s index’, (84th) in 2020 and (82nd) in 2019.