Belgium now features on a shared fifth place in the Henley and Partners' Global Passport Ranking also known as "the most powerful passport in the world" ranking. Belgium is up from 7. Singapore that has ousted Japan tops the league table based on the number of countries to which a national passport offers visa-free travel.
Henley and Partners scrutinise the passports of 199 different countries . After five years at the top Japan drops to third place in the rankings.
In the rankings, Asian countries traditionally do very well. A Singaporean passport allows visa-free travel to 192 destinations. The country also topped the list in 2021. Over the last 10 years, Singapore added 25 visa-free destinations to its list.
Europe does a lot better than in 2022. Germany and Spain rise from third to second place. Belgium too is doing well rising from seventh to fifth place. Compared to last year this year there is one extra destination to visit without a visa on your Belgian passport.
The United States, on the other hand, is not doing so well. The US is now in eighth place. The UK, which dropped a few places on the list after Brexit, rises again for the first time, finishing in fourth place.
But far from every country enjoys such travel freedoms. Afghanistan dangles at the very bottom of the list, in 112th position. Afghan citizens can only travel to 27 countries without having to obtain a visa. Citizens of Iraq, Syria, Pakistan and Yemen also enjoy limited travel freedoms.
Still, Henley & Partners researchers end on a hopeful note. In the 18-year history of the ranking, researchers saw the average number of destinations to which travellers have visa-free access almost double: from 58 in 2006 to 109 today.
"Global connectedness and accessibility have become indispensable attributes for creating and maintaining wealth, and their value will only increase as geopolitical volatility and regional instability increase," the report concludes.
How does one determine "most powerful passport" status?
The ranking of the most powerful passports in the world is determined using the Global Passport Ranking, a gauge that measures global travel freedom. Henley and Partners look at which of 227 travel destinations passport holders can travel to without having to apply for a visa. Based on this travel freedom, countries are then assigned a score.