Passport Index has revealed its ranking on passports for 2021. The ranking is based on the ease with which citizens can travel abroad and be allowed to enter any given country.
The top-20 most powerful passports this year are from:
- Germany 🇩🇪 Visa free: 99. Visa on arrival: 35. Visa required: 64.
- Finland 🇫🇮 Visa free: 98. Visa on arrival: 36. Visa required: 64.
- Spain 🇪🇸 Visa free: 98. Visa on arrival: 36. Visa required: 64.
- Switzerland 🇨🇭 Visa free: 95. Visa on arrival: 39. Visa required: 64.
- Sweden 🇸🇪 Visa free: 99. Visa on arrival: 34. Visa required: 65.
- Belgium 🇧🇪 Visa free: 99. Visa on arrival: 34. Visa required: 65.
- Austria 🇦🇹 Visa free: 98. Visa on arrival: 35. Visa required: 65.
- Italy 🇮🇹 Visa free: 98. Visa on arrival: 35. Visa required: 65.
- Norway 🇳🇴 Visa free: 96. Visa on arrival: 37. Visa required: 65.
- Ireland 🇮🇪 Visa free: 95. Visa on arrival: 38. Visa required: 65.
- Denmark 🇩🇰 Visa free: 99. Visa on arrival: 33. Visa required: 66.
- Netherlands 🇳🇱 Visa free: 98. Visa on arrival: 34. Visa required: 66.
- France 🇫🇷 Visa free: 98. Visa on arrival: 34. Visa required: 66.
- Portugal 🇵🇹 Visa free: 98. Visa on arrival: 34. Visa required: 66.
- Luxembourg 🇱🇺 Visa free: 97. Visa on arrival: 35. Visa required: 66.
- Greece 🇬🇷 Visa free: 96. Visa on arrival: 36. Visa required: 66.
- Hungary 🇭🇺 Visa free: 96. Visa on arrival: 36. Visa required: 66.
- Czech Republic 🇨🇿 Visa free: 96. Visa on arrival: 35. Visa required: 67.
- Poland 🇵🇱 Visa free: 95. Visa on arrival: 36. Visa required: 67.
- United Kingdom 🇬🇧 Visa free: 93. Visa on arrival: 38. Visa required: 67.
When taking into account Covid-19 travel restrictions, Germany is the most powerful passport in 2021 with visa-free or visa on arrival access to 134 destinations. In 2020, Belgium was leading this ranking.
The United States were ranked much further down with a total of 105 countries their citizens can travel to, 64 of which visa are visa-free.
At the bottom of the ranking at 78th place are Iraq and Afghanistan with access to only 31 and 30 destinations respectively.