Global Passport Ranking 2022 - UK Passport Weaker Than Other European | IaM (Immigration and Migration)

Global Passport Ranking 2022 – UK Passport Weaker Than Other European Passports

Charlie Immigration updates 31 January 2022 | Updated On December 21, 2022 | 0

There's a widening gap between the global north and the global south when it comes to travel freedoms, says the first 2022 report by London-based global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners.

Henley & Partner's list is one of several indexes created by financial firms to rank global passports according to the access they provide to their citizens.

The Henley Passport Index ranks 199 passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa. It is updated in real-time throughout the year, as and when visa policy changes come into effect.

The firm's Passport Index is based on exclusive data provided by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and has been regularly monitoring the world's most travel-friendly passports since 2006. Check out 2021's most powerful passports and compare that to that 2020's Passport ranking and Check out how Brexit affected the UK's Passport ranking.

Holders of the United Kingdom (UK) passport are eligible to travel to a total of 186 destinations worldwide without being obliged to obtain a visa in order to do so, which ranks the UK in the sixth position in the list of the world’s most powerful passports.

According to the report published by Henley and Partners, the UK passport has regained some of its previous strength after falling all the way to eighth place in 2020, which is the lowest spot the UK held in the index’s 17th-year history.

EU Member Dominates The Ranking

Further down the top 10, the rankings remain virtually unchanged as we enter the first quarter of 2022.

The report shows that Japan and Singapore have the world’s most powerful passports, while its holders are permitted to travel to a total of 192 countries worldwide visa-free.

European passports also continue to be ranked in the top places while their passports permit their citizens to travel without a visa to a large number of countries worldwide.

South Korea is tied with Germany in second place and Finland, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain are all together in third place.

EU countries dominate the top of the list as usual, with France, Netherlands and Sweden climbing one spot to join Austria and Denmark in fourth place . Ireland and Portugal are in fifth place.

The United States and the United Kingdom, which held the top spot together back in 2014, have regained a little ground. They've risen one ranking to No.6, alongside Switzerland, Norway, Belgium, and New Zealand.

At 7th place is occupied by Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Greece, and Malta.

Eastern European countries make up the rest of the top 10. Hungary and Poland have risen to eighth place, Lithuania and Slovakia have climbed to 9th place, and Estonia, Latvia, and Slovenia are in the tenth position.

The best passports to hold in 2022

1. Japan, Singapore (192 destinations)

2. Germany, South Korea (190)

3. Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain (189)

4. Austria, Denmark, France, Netherlands, Sweden (188)

5. Ireland, Portugal (187)

6. Belgium, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, United States (186)

7. Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, Greece, Malta (185)

8. Poland, Hungary (183)

9. Lithuania, Slovakia (182)

10. Estonia, Latvia, Slovenia (181)

To view the full list, you can visit global ranking on the official website.

Do you need to renew your passport? Talk to us in the comment section below. Or if you need more advice on the above, contact us for further travel & immigration advice.

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If you need help with a US visa, a UK Visa, or a visa to Europe, including help with appointment booking obligations, IaM can help. For more information and advice on US immigration, UK immigration law and US visa applications or if you need any help or assistance please, reach out to your Visa Coordinator at IaM.

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