The Reasons Behind India's Indian Passport Is Falling in Global Ranking

In recent months, an online clip from a popular travel content creator complaining about the limited power of the Indian passport went viral on social media.

He mentioned that while nearby nations such as Sri Lanka and Bhutan offered easier access of Indian tourists, obtaining visas to travel to most Western and European countries remained a challenge.

This dissatisfaction with India's poor passport strength was reflected in the latest global passport ranking, which placed India at position eighty-five among nearly two hundred nations, five spots lower compared to the previous year.

The Indian government have not issued a statement regarding these findings so far.

Nations including Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size than India – a nation that is the fifth-largest economy globally – hold better positions on the index at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, in that order.

Actually, the country's position over the last ten years has remained in the 80s, falling to the 90th spot two years ago. These rankings appear poor when measured against Asian nations like Japan, South Korea and Singapore, which have consistently held top positions.

Global Passport Power Indicates

The power of a passport indicates a country's global influence and global influence. This leads to enhanced travel freedom for its citizens, improving commercial and educational prospects. Limited passport power results in additional documentation, increased visa expenses, fewer travel privileges and longer waiting times for travel.

But despite the decline in the rank, the count of nations offering visa-free access to Indians has grown over the last ten years.

As an instance, eight years ago – the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party came to power – fifty-two nations provided visa-free travel to Indians and its passport at seventy-sixth position in the ranking.

The following year, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then rose to 80th in 2023 and 2024, dropping again to the 85th position this year. Meanwhile, countries allowing visa-free travel to Indian citizens grew from 52 in 2015 to sixty last year and 62 in 2024.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The count of visa-free destinations this year (fifty-seven) exceeds the number eight years ago (fifty-two), yet the country's position for both these years is 85. What explains this situation?

Analysts note that a primary factor is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – indicating that countries are forming additional travel agreements to benefit their citizens and economic growth. According to recent analysis, the global average count of countries travellers are able to access visa-free has almost doubled from 58 in 2006 to one hundred nine currently.

As an illustration, China has expanded the number of visa-free destinations available to its citizens from 50 to 82 in the past decade. As a result, its rank on the index has improved from 94th to 60th in that same duration.

Meanwhile, The Indian passport – previously positioned at seventy-seventh place during summer – fell to eighty-fifth place this autumn following the loss to two countries.

Other Influences Affecting Passport Strength

An ex-diplomat from India says there are other factors influencing the strength of a country's passport, like its economic and political stability plus its openness to accepting travelers from abroad.

For instance, the American passport has fallen from the top ten and now occupies twelfth place – a historic low – due to its more inward-looking approach in global affairs.

The diplomat mentioned how in the 1970s, Indian citizens had visa-free access to many Western and European countries, but that changed after the Khalistan movement in the 1980s. Later political disturbances have continued to damage at India's image as a stable, democratic country.

"Many countries are growing more cautious regarding migrants," he stated. "The country possesses a high number of people migrating overseas or remaining beyond visa limits affecting the national image."

Elements like the security level a country's passport is and immigration processes also contribute to obtaining visa-free access to foreign nations.

Security and Technological Improvements

India's passport remains vulnerable to security threats. Last year, law enforcement arrested over two hundred individuals for alleged visa and passport fraud. India is also known for complex immigration processes with lengthy timelines of visa processing.

The former ambassador indicated that new technologies, like India's recently-launched digital passport or e-passport, can improve security and ease the immigration process. This electronic document contains a small chip holding biometric information, making it harder to forge or tamper with the document.

But, increased diplomatic efforts and travel agreements remain key to boosting international travel freedom of Indians and consequently, the Indian passport's global position.