🔗 Share this article

In recent months, an online clip from an Indian travel influencer expressing frustration over India's weak passport gained massive traction across digital platforms.

The influencer stated although nearby nations such as Sri Lanka and Bhutan offered easier access of Indian tourists, securing travel permits to travel to many nations in Europe and the West remained a challenge.

Such concerns with India's poor passport strength found confirmation in the latest global passport ranking, which placed the country in the 85th spot out of 199 countries, five spots lower compared to the previous year.

The Indian government has not commented on the report so far.

Nations like Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan with much smaller economies than India – which is the fifth-largest economy globally – hold better positions in the ranking at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, in that order.

Actually, the country's position over the last ten years has remained in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot in 2021. These rankings are dismal compared to other Asian countries like Singapore, Japan and South Korea, all maintaining top positions.

Global Passport Power Measures

Passport strength reflects a nation's soft power and international standing. It also translates into enhanced travel freedom for its citizens, improving commercial and learning opportunities. Limited passport power results in additional documentation, higher visa costs, fewer travel privileges and longer waiting times for travel.

But despite the decline in the rank, the number of countries offering visa-free access for Indian citizens has grown over the last ten years.

For example, eight years ago – the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power – 52 countries offered visa-free access to Indians with the passport at seventy-sixth position in the ranking.

The following year, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then improved to eightieth over the past two years, dropping again to the 85th position currently. Meanwhile, visa-free destinations for Indians grew from fifty-two eight years ago to sixty last year and 62 in 2024.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The number of nations allowing visa-free entry in 2025 (fifty-seven) is higher than the number in 2015 (52), yet the country's position for both these years remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Experts say that a major reason involves growing competition in international travel – indicating that nations are entering into additional travel agreements for their populations' advantage and economic growth. According to a 2025 report, the global average number of destinations people can visit visa-free has nearly doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to one hundred nine currently.

As an illustration, China has expanded the number of visa-free countries its citizens can travel to from fifty to eighty-two over the last ten years. As a result, its rank in the ranking has enhanced from 94th to 60th in that same duration.

In comparison, The Indian passport – which was ranked at seventy-seventh place in July – fell to eighty-fifth place this autumn after losing access to two countries.

Other Influences Affecting Passport Strength

A former Indian ambassador says multiple elements that affect a nation's passport power, including its economic and political stability plus its receptiveness to accepting travelers from other countries.

For instance, the US passport has dropped out of the top 10 and now occupies the 12th position – a historic low – because of its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The former ambassador recalls how in the 1970s, Indians enjoyed visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, but that changed following Sikh separatist movement during the eighties. Later political disturbances have further chipped away the country's reputation as a stable democracy.

"Many countries are also becoming increasingly wary regarding migrants," he stated. "The country possesses a large quantity of citizens emigrating to other countries or remaining beyond visa limits and that interferes with the national image."

Factors like how secure of a national passport and its immigration procedures also play a role in gaining visa-free access to foreign nations.

Enhanced Security Measures

India's passport remains vulnerable to security threats. In 2024, authorities arrested over two hundred individuals for suspected visa and passport fraud. The country also has complex immigration processes and a slow pace of visa processing.

The diplomat indicated that technological advances, like India's recently-launched digital passport or e-passport, can improve security and ease the immigration process. This electronic document contains a small chip holding biometric information, making it harder to counterfeit or alter the document.

But, more diplomatic outreach and travel partnerships remain key to boosting international travel freedom of Indians and, by extension, India's passport ranking.