A new ranking of the world's most powerful passports shows who gets through airports easily and who doesn't
According to Henley & Partners Visa Restrictions Index, released on February 24, Germans hold the strongest passports on the planet, giving them visa-free access to 177 countries worldwide.
The European nation has been ranked in top place for three years in a row, according to a graphic displaying the index findings.
The index ranked 199 countries according to the travel freedom each offers their citizens out of a possible 218 countries, using data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). According to the index, the IATA holds "the world's largest database of travel information."
Nationalities were awarded points based on the number of other countries their citizens can travel to without a visa, as of January 1, 2016.
Following Germany, Sweden came in second place with visa-free access to 176 countries. The United Kingdom - which held the top spot in the ranking between 2013 and 2015 - came in third place with Finland, France, Italy, and Spain, with 175 countries at passport holders' fingertips.
The United States dropped from second place in 2015 to fourth place this year, tied with Belgium, Denmark, and the Netherlands, all of which offer access to 174 countries.
As for nations with the most limited travel, Afghanistan is ranked the worst in 104th place, with access to just 25 countries. Pakistan is second-worst, with travel permitted to 29 countries, and Iraq is third from the bottom, restricted to 30 other countries.
Here is the top 10:
- Rank, country, visa-free access
- 1. Germany, 177
- 2. Sweden, 176
- 3. Finland, France, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, 175
- 4. Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, United States, 174
- 5. Austria, Japan, Singapore, 173
- 6. Canada, Ireland (Republic of), Korea (Republic of, South), Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland, 172
- 7. Greece, New Zealand, 171
- 8. Australia, 169
- 9. Malta, 168
- 10. Hungary, Czech Republic, Iceland, 167
Take a look at the graphic showing the index findings, and download the complete ranking here.