London-based travel Henley & Partners has released a ranking of passports for 2023. The list places the Pakistani passport amongst the five worst passports out of 109 countries.
According to international media reports, only 35 out of the 227 travel destinations considered in the list, allow Pakistani passport holders visa-free or visa-on-arrival entry, followed by Syria (25 destinations), Iraq (29 destinations), and Afghanistan (27 destinations).
However, in comparison to Pakistan, India ranks far better and has been placed on 85, according to a newly-released quarterly report by the London-based firm.
Japan’s passport, according to Henley, tops the list of passports that allow travel freedom to citizens and passport holders.
The world’s top three most powerful passports all belong to Asian countries. Of these, the Japanese passport offers its holders the greatest degree of global travel freedom, followed by passports of Singapore and South Korea.
Japanese passports allow nationals of Japan visa-free or visa-on-demand access to an astounding 193 countries around the world. Singapore and South Korea follow suit as nationals of these countries can freely visit 192 other nations.
After the three Asian countries, the countries with the most powerful passports are largely European.
Passports from both Germany and Spain allow holders to freely travel to 190 destinations, followed by Italy, Luxembourg and Finland, which allow nationals to visit 189 countries with ease.
In fifth place, the passports of Denmark, Sweden, Austria, and Netherlands are all tied; whereas, the passports of France, Ireland, Portugal and the United Kingdom are at number 6.
Surprisingly enough, the US passport is slated at number 7, along with the passports of Belgium, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, and the Czech Republic.
At the bottom of the list is the Afghan passport, which allows Afghan nationals visa-free or visa-on-arrival entry to only 27 countries in the world.
The best passports to hold in 2023:1. Japan (193 destinations)
2. Singapore, South Korea (192 destinations)
3. Germany, Spain (190 destinations)
4. Finland, Italy, Luxembourg (189 destinations)
5. Austria, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden (188 destinations)
6. France, Ireland, Portugal, United Kingdom (187 destinations)
7. Belgium, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, United States, Czech Republic (186 destinations)
8. Australia, Canada, Greece, Malta (185 destinations)
9. Hungary, Poland (184 destinations)
10. Lithuania, Slovakia (183 destinations)
The worst passports to hold in 2023:Countries that allow visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 40 or fewer destinations.
102. North Korea (40 destinations)
103. Nepal, Palestinian territory (38 destinations)
104. Somalia (35 destinations)
105. Yemen (34 destinations)
106. Pakistan (32 destinations)
107. Syria (30 destinations)
108. Iraq (29 destinations)
109. Afghanistan (27 destinations)
Pakistani passport ranked fifth-worst in the world
