It is the first time that the United States is no longer in the top 10 powerful passport of the world.
As of the most recent Henley Passport Index, which examines how many touring nations travellers can access without a visa, the US passport has taken the 12 th place in the world, on a par with Malaysia, with visa-free access to 180 of 227 destinations around the globe.
The US was in the seventh position last year and dropped to the tenth position in July this year. In 2014, it was at the top of the list.
Henley passport index dominated by Asian Trifecta
Three Asian countries take the first place in the 2025 rating. Singapore leads the list in terms of the number of visa-free destinations, with 193 countries, South Korea (190) and Japan (189).
According to Christian H Kaelin, the author of the index, and a chair of Henley & Partners, the weakening of the US passport as one of the most powerful globally throughout the last decade is not a simple change of positions but a complete transformation in the mobility and dynamics of soft power. Pro-opened countries are sailing ahead and those with a sense of settled privilege are being left behind, he said.
Why The Drop?
The fall is associated with a cascade of changes and absence of reciprocity. In April, Brazil cancelled visa free travel to travellers in the US, Canada, and Australia because of the absence of same treatment.
In the meanwhile, China has aligned relaxed entry rules over dozens of European countries, including Germany and France, but not the US.
Other nations such as Papua New Guinea and Myanmar have had their policies altered in a manner that helped the positions of other nations at the expense of the US position. The last success was that of the new eVisa system of Somalia and the move by Vietnam at refusing the US its new visa-free additions.
The US Travel Policies are also to be blamed as tighter.
The drop in the ranking is also paralleled by changes in US immigration and travel policies that were brought by the Trump administration. In their press release, Henley & Partners indicated that reciprocity is hugely significant in rankings. Although Americans are allowed to travel into 180 destinations without visa, the US only allows 46 countries to enter without a visa.
The 2025 Powerhouse Passport in the World
Singapore – 193 destinations
South Korea – 190
Japan – 189
Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, Switzerland – 188
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Netherlands – 187.
Greece, Hungary, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Sweden – 186.
Australia, Czech Republic, Malta, Poland – 185.
By 184 countries, Croatia, Estonia, Slovakia, Slovenia, UAE, UK.
Canada – 183
Latvia, Liechtenstein – 182
Iceland, Lithuania – 181
USA, Malaysia – 180
In the meantime, India has dropped in the Henley Passport Index to 85, and accessibility to 57 countries without a visa. India had the 80th position in the list with visa-free movement to 62 destinations eastern countries last year with its passport.
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