🔗 Share this article

In recent months, an online clip from a popular travel content creator complaining about India's weak passport gained massive traction across digital platforms.

The influencer stated although nearby nations such as Bhutan and Sri Lanka were more welcoming to travelers from India, securing travel permits for visiting many nations in Europe and the West continued to be difficult.

Such concerns with India's poor passport strength was reflected in recent global passport ranking, ranking India in the 85th spot out of 199 countries, five spots lower compared to the previous year.

Officials in India have not issued a statement regarding these findings yet.

Nations including Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size than India – a nation that is the world's fifth biggest economy – are ranked higher in the ranking in the seventies range, respectively.

In fact, the country's position over the last ten years has hovered in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot in 2021. These rankings appear poor compared to Asian nations such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore, all maintaining leading ranks.

Global Passport Power Measures

The power of a passport indicates a country's global influence and global influence. This leads to better mobility for its citizens, improving commercial and learning opportunities. Limited passport power results in more paperwork, higher visa costs, fewer travel privileges and extended processing periods for travel.

But despite the decline in the rank, the count of nations offering visa-free access for Indian citizens has grown in the past decade or so.

For example, in 2014 – the year the current administration's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) assumed office – fifty-two nations offered visa-free travel to Indians and its passport at seventy-sixth position in the ranking.

A year later, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then rose to 80th in 2023 and 2024, dropping again to the 85th position this year. At the same time, countries allowing visa-free travel to Indian citizens increased from fifty-two eight years ago to 60 in 2023 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 (fifty-two), yet India's rank during both periods remains at eighty-fifth. What explains this situation?

Analysts note that a major reason is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – indicating that countries are entering into additional travel agreements for their populations' advantage and economic growth. According to a 2025 report, the global average number of destinations travellers are able to access without visas has almost doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to 109 in 2025.

For example, The Chinese passport has expanded the number of visa-free destinations its citizens can travel to from fifty to eighty-two in the past decade. Consequently, its position on the index has enhanced from 94th to 60th in that same duration.

Meanwhile, India – which was ranked 77th on the index during summer – fell to eighty-fifth place in October after losing access to two countries.

Other Influences Impacting Passport Power

An ex-diplomat from India says multiple elements influencing the strength of a country's passport, like its economic and political stability as well as its receptiveness to welcoming citizens from other countries.

For example, the American passport has dropped out from the top ten and now occupies the 12th position – its lowest ever – because of its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The diplomat recalls how in the 1970s, Indians enjoyed visa-free travel to many Western and European countries, but that changed after the Khalistan movement during the eighties. Subsequent political upheavals have continued to damage at India's image as a stable, democratic country.

"Numerous nations are growing more cautious regarding migrants," he stated. "India has a high number of people migrating to other countries or remaining beyond visa limits and that interferes with the national image."

Factors like how secure of a national passport and immigration processes also contribute in gaining visa-free access to other countries.

Security and Technological Improvements

India's passport remains vulnerable to security risks. Last year, law enforcement detained 203 people for suspected visa and passport fraud. India is also known for cumbersome immigration procedures and a slow pace for visa approvals.

The diplomat says that technological advances, like India's recently-launched electronic passport or e-passport, can improve security and ease the immigration process. This electronic document contains a small chip holding biometric data, making it harder to forge or tamper with the document.

However, increased diplomatic efforts and travel partnerships remain key for enhancing international travel freedom of Indians and consequently, the Indian passport's global position.