T he United States continues its decade-long slide to the 9th spot on the Henley Passport Index , a ranking of the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa. Global mobility is an important measure of soft power for a nation’s citizens when they go abroad. A U.
S. passport currently gives its holder access to 186 destinations visa-free—putting the blue book on equal standing to the Estonian passport. In comparison, citizens of Singapore—the No.
1 passport in the ranking— enjoy access to 195 travel destinations out of 227 around the world visa-free. The second most powerful passport in the world is Japan, which gives access to 193 destinations without needing a visa. This time last year, the U.
S. had climbed a spot to No. 7 , up from No.
8 the previous year. Just over a decade ago, in 2014, the U.S.
jointly held No. 1 position with the United Kingdom. The United States’ ranking is held down by its lack of reciprocity, according to how Henley & Partners makes its calculations.
While American passport holders can access 186 out of 227 destinations visa-free, the U.S. itself allows only 46 other nationalities to pass through its borders visa-free, putting it way down the Henley Openness Index in 84th place (compared to 9th place on the Henley Passport Index).
The Openness Index ranks countries and territories worldwide according to the number of nationalities they permit entry to without a prior visa. Some e.
