Pakistani passport still among least powerful in latest ranking

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani passport has been ranked among the weakest, placed at the 103rd place in the Henley Passport Index for 2025.

It falls alongside Yemen on the list. The list disclosed that Pakistani passport offers visa-free access to only 33 countries.

The Henley index ranks all the world’s 199 passports according to the number of destinations they can access visa-free. It is based on exclusive Timatic data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

For the year 2025, the top spot is secured by Singapore. with its passport allowing visa-free access to 195 countries. Japan has been ranked as the world’s second most powerful passport.

Several EU member states including France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, drop two places in the ranking to third position. They are joined by Finland and South Korea. Both the countries lost a place over the past 12 months and with no prior visa required, they now have access to 192 destinations.

The fourth place is shared by a seven-nation EU cohort, all with visa-free access to 191 destinations — Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden.

Moreover, only 22 of the world’s 199 passports have fallen down the Henley Passport Index ranking over the past decade.

In a surprise, the US is the second-biggest faller between 2015 and 2025 after Venezuela, plummeting seven places from second to its current ninth position.

The countries with weaker passports than Pakistan include Iraq (104th), Syria (105th), and Afghanistan (106th), whereas, Somalia, Nepal, Palestine, and Bangladesh are ranked just above Pakistan, with Somalia holding the 102nd spot.

Furthermore, India is ranked 85th, China at 60th, Iran at 96th, and Saudi Arabia holds the 58th position in the latest index.

In 2024, the Pakistani passport was ranked the fourth worst in the world by Henley Passport Index.