The UAE passport has climbed up the rankings and has now entered the top 10 in the list of the world’s strongest passports.
According to a new update on Tuesday on the Henley Passport Index, the UAE passport now ranks ninth on the list with a visa-free score of 185.
This is an impressive climb for the passport, which added 152 destinations since the index’s inception in 2006. During the period, the passport has risen a remarkable 53 places in the ranking from its 62nd position.
The UAE passport’s meteoric ascent “is the result of deliberate and concerted efforts by the Emirati government to position the UAE as a global hub for business, tourism, and investment. Our research has consistently shown a strong correlation between a country’s visa-free score and its economic prosperity. Nations with higher visa-free scores tend to enjoy greater GDP per capita, increased foreign direct investment, and more robust international trade relationships”, said Henley & Partners CEO Juerg Steffen.
Singapore reclaims top spot
Singapore has broken away from the group of six countries that shared the top spot on the Henley Passport Index, reclaiming its title as the world’s most powerful passport in the latest ranking. The city-state has also set a new record score, with its citizens now enjoying access to 195 travel destinations out of 227 around the world visa-free.
France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Spain drop to joint-second place, each with visa-free access to 192 destinations. Meanwhile, an unprecedented seven-nation cohort, each with access to 191 destinations without a prior visa — Austria, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, South Korea and Sweden — now sit in third place on the ranking, which is based on exclusive and official data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
The UK hangs onto the fourth place along with Belgium, Denmark, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland, despite its visa-free destination score falling to 190. The US, on the other hand, continues its now decade-long slide down the index, dropping down to eighth spot, with access to just 186 destinations visa-free. Former passport powerhouses, the UK and the US jointly held first place on the index 10 years ago in 2014.
Afghanistan passport remains weakest
Afghanistan remains firmly entrenched as the world’s weakest passport, losing access to yet another destination over the past six months, leaving its citizens with access to only 26 countries visa-free — the lowest score ever recorded in history of the 19-year-old index.
“The general trend over the past two decades has been towards greater travel freedom, with the global average number of destinations travelers are able to access visa-free nearly doubling from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024. However, the global mobility gap between those at the top and bottom of the index is now wider than it has ever been, with top-ranked Singapore able to access a record-breaking 169 more destinations visa-free than Afghanistan,” said Christian H. Kaelin, Chairman of Henley & Partners.
According to IATA, airlines will connect nearly five billion people over 22,000 routes on 39 million flights in 2024, and the air cargo transported will reach 62 million tonnes, facilitating an astonishing $8.3 trillion in trade. Its director general Willie Walsh says despite the immense value generated by the aviation industry, the margins are incredibly tight.
“Our industry expects to record revenues of almost $1 trillion this year. Expenses, however, will also be at a record high of $936 billion. Net profit will be $30.5 billion. This translates to a modest net margin of around 3 percent, making the profit per passenger just $6.14 — barely enough for a single espresso in a typical hotel café. Additionally, this year, the return on invested capital is projected at 5.7 percent, significantly below the average 9 percent cost of capital. Despite this, the real cost of air travel has fallen 34 percent over the last decade.”
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