New Delhi: The 2024 Henley Passport Index has been released, and France has claimed the top spot. However, India’s passport ranking has slightly decreased, moving from 84th to 85th place.
Despite this decline, Indian passport holders can now travel visa-free to 62 countries, up from 60 last year. The Henley Passport Index evaluates countries based on passport strength, and in 2024, France leads with visa-free access to 194 countries.
Other top-ranked nations include Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore, and Spain. Meanwhile, Pakistan remains at 106th place, similar to last year, and Bangladesh has slipped from 101st to 102nd position.
Despite recent visa-free entry offers from Iran, Malaysia, and Thailand for Indian tourists, India has slipped in the Henley Passport Index rankings, now standing at 85th place. On the other hand, Maldives maintains a strong position at 58th place, allowing its passport holders visa-free travel to 96 countries.
The Henley Passport Index bases its rankings on data spanning the past 19 years, utilizing specialized data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) covering 199 passports and 227 travel destinations globally. This index, updated monthly, is considered a global standard for citizens of independent countries.
Over the past two decades, the data from the Henley Passport Index reveals significant changes in global mobility. In 2006, people could travel visa-free to an average of 58 countries, and this year, that number has nearly doubled to 111 countries.
