World’s strongest passports in 2021: Here’s the place India stands

India’s rank has slipped by six locations from final yr 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 international locations are easing journey guidelines for worldwide guests after virtually two years for the reason that onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The index ranks the passports of nations based on the variety of locations their holders can go to with out a prior visa. The rankings are based mostly on the evaluation of knowledge supplied by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Japan and Singapore stood on the prime of this yr’s listing, with their passports holders allowed to journey visa-free to 192 international locations, whereas South Korea and Germany share the second place. For the third consecutive yr, Japan has secured the highest place. Meanwhile, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, and Yemen are among the many least highly effective.
India, which held the 84th rank final yr, fell right down to the ninetieth place, with its passport holders allowed to journey visa-free to 58 international locations. India shares the rank with Tajikistan and Burkina Faso.
The agency’s This autumn Global Mobility report says, “The global mobility gap is at its widest point ever and continues to expand due to proliferating barriers to entry erected since the outbreak of the pandemic. Many countries in the global south have relaxed their borders in a concerted effort to revive their economies but there has been very little reciprocity from countries in the global north, which have enforced some of the most stringent inbound Covid-19-related travel restrictions. Even fully vaccinated travelers from countries at the lower end of the Henley Passport Index remain locked out of most of the developed world.”
World’s 10 strongest passports:
1. Japan, Singapore (Score:192)2. Germany, South Korea (Score: 190)3. Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain (Score: 189)4. Austria, Denmark (Score: 188)5. France, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden (Score: 187)6. Belgium, New Zealand, Switzerland (Score: 186)7. Czech Republic, Greece, Malta, Norway, United Kingdom, United States (Score: 185)8. Australia, Canada (Score: 184)9. Hungary (Score: 183)10. Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia (Score: 182)
World’s 10 least highly effective passports:
1. Iran, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Sudan (Score:41)2. Bangladesh, Kosovo, Libya (Score: 40)3. North Korea (Score: 39)4. Nepal, Palestinian Territory (Score: 37)5. Somalia (Score: 34)6. Yemen (Score: 33)7. Pakistan (Score: 31)8. Syria (Score: 29)9. Iraq (Score: 28)10. Afghanistan (Score: 26)
Prepared by Henley and Partners, a London-based international citizenship and residence advisory agency, the Henley Passport Index claims to be the “original ranking of all the world’s passports”. The index covers 227 locations and 199 passports.