Henley and Partners, a global research firm which facilitates Citizenship by Investment and publishes annual reports on citizenship schemes has released their 2018 edition of the Global Passport Index. The firm ranks 199 countries using what it says is exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and extensive in-house research. The Maldives has moved two spots up from last year, going from 60th to 58th with visa-free access to 83 countries. We are lagging behind the South American countries of Ecuador and Guyana. Georgia and Fiji has taken the lead ahead of Maldives compared with last year’s rankings.
Visa-free access countries for Maldivian passport holders.
Germany for fifth consecutive year has taken the top spot with the most powerful passport on the planet, enjoying visa-free access to 177 countries. Singapore ranks second globally and the first in Asia, with visa-free access to 176 countries. Denmark, Finland, France, Italy, Japan, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom share the third place with visa-free access to 175 countries. Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Spain share the fourth place with visa-free access to 174 countries.
Somalia, Pakistan, Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan remain in the bottom five places of the ranking, which means that citizens of these countries enjoy the least freedom of travel.
The following combination of 14 passports would grant you visa-free access to the whole world.
The Henley Passport Index website provides comprehensive, interactive tools, printable lists, collects and evaluates passports from across the world according to the number of countries you can access visa-free, with an electronic visa (e-Visa), with a visa on arrival, or with a normal visa. The website allows visitors to compare the strength of passports and understand how to improve ones travel freedom with alternative citizenship. The Henley Passport Index ranks on their total visa-free score, meaning how much global mobility the passport holder has.
Disclaimer: The minimum number of passports granting global visa-free access is set at fourteen. But, multiple viable combinations of fourteen passports exist. The information provided here is based on the 2018 Henley Passport Index as 15 January 2018.
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