Why India's Indian Passport Continues to Drop in Global Ranking

Earlier this year, a video from a popular travel content creator complaining about the limited power of the Indian passport gained massive traction on social media.

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

This dissatisfaction with India's poor passport strength was reflected in the latest Henley Passport Index, which placed India in the 85th spot among 199 countries, a decline of five positions compared to the previous year.

Officials in India has not commented on the report yet.

Nations like Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size compared to India – which is the fifth-largest economy globally – are ranked higher in the ranking at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, in that order.

In fact, the country's position over the last ten years has hovered in the 80s, even dipping to ninetieth place in 2021. Such standings appear poor when measured against other Asian countries like Singapore, Japan and South Korea, all maintaining leading ranks.

What Passport Strength Measures

The power of a passport reflects a nation's soft power and international standing. This leads to better mobility for its citizens, improving commercial and learning opportunities. A weak passport results in more paperwork, increased visa expenses, reduced travel benefits and longer waiting times for travel.

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

As an instance, in 2014 – when the current administration's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power – fifty-two nations offered visa-free travel for Indian passport holders with the passport at seventy-sixth position on the index.

The following year, it fell to the 85th position, then improved to eightieth over the past two years, declining once more to the 85th position currently. At the same time, countries allowing visa-free travel to Indian citizens increased from fifty-two eight years ago to sixty last year and sixty-two this year.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The count of visa-free destinations in 2025 (fifty-seven) exceeds the number in 2015 (fifty-two), yet the country's position for both these years remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Analysts note that a major reason is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – indicating that countries are entering into more travel partnerships for their populations' advantage and economic growth. According to recent analysis, the worldwide mean number of destinations people can visit visa-free has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 109 in 2025.

For example, China has expanded its count of visa-free countries available to its citizens from 50 to 82 in the past decade. As a result, its position on the index has enhanced from ninety-fourth to sixtieth in that same duration.

In comparison, India – which was ranked at seventy-seventh place in July – fell to the 85th position in October following the loss to two countries.

Additional Factors Affecting Passport Strength

An ex-diplomat from India notes multiple elements influencing a nation's passport power, including its economic and political stability plus its openness to welcoming citizens from abroad.

For example, the American passport has fallen from the top ten currently holding the 12th position – its lowest ever – because of its more inward-looking approach in world politics.

The former ambassador mentioned that during the seventies, Indians enjoyed visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, but that changed following Sikh separatist movement in the 1980s. Later political disturbances have further chipped away the country's reputation as a stable, democratic country.

"Many countries are also becoming more cautious regarding migrants," he stated. "India has a high number of citizens emigrating to other countries or remaining beyond visa limits affecting the country's reputation."

Elements like the security level a country's passport is and its immigration procedures also play a role in gaining visa-free entry to foreign nations.

Enhanced Security Measures

The Indian passport remains vulnerable to security risks. In 2024, law enforcement arrested over two hundred individuals for alleged visa and passport fraud. India is also known for cumbersome immigration procedures and a slow pace for visa approvals.

The former ambassador says that technological advances, like India's recently-launched digital passport or e-passport, may enhance safety and streamline immigration. The e-passport includes a small chip that stores biometric information, increasing difficulty to forge or tamper with the document.

But, increased diplomatic efforts and travel partnerships continue essential to boosting international travel freedom of Indians and consequently, India's passport ranking.