Japan Slips to Second Behind Singapore in Powerful Passport Ranking

Japan slipped from top to second position in 2024 in the Henley Passport Index, which ranks passports by how many countries and regions around the world people holding them can visit without a prior visa. It had been first for six years from 2018, but Singapore moved ahead to become the sole leader in 2024. The ranking is created by the British consulting firm Henley & Partners, based on data from the International Air Transport Association concerning 199 countries and regions and 227 travel destinations.

Japan shares second position with Finland, France, Germany, Italy, South Korea, and Spain. Citizens holding passports from these nations can enter 192 countries and regions without a visa. Travelers with a Singapore passport can enter 195.

Global Passport Ranking (2024)

1. Singapore (195)
2. Japan, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, South Korea, Spain (192)
3. Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden (191)
4. Belgium, Britain, New Zealand, Portugal, Switzerland (190)
5. Australia, Greece (189)

Created by Nippon.com based on data from Henley & Partners. Numbers in parentheses indicate the number of countries/regions citizens can enter without a visa.

Lower down the list, the United States was in eighth position (186 countries/regions), Taiwan in thirty-fourth (141), Russia forty-sixth (116), China sixtieth (85), and Egypt ninetieth (52). The United Arab Emirates broke into the top 10 for the first time, in ninth place (185).

Meanwhile, in the openness ranking for allowing other countries and regions’ passport holders to enter without a visa, Japan was seventieth, allowing visa-free entry for people from 70 countries and regions. Singapore was fifteenth with a total of 164.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)