Islamabad (Pakistan News online) This news may be disappointing for Pakistanis, as Pakistan’s passport has further dropped in the global passport rankings this year, placing it at 103rd position worldwide.
According to the latest report by the global ranking firm Henley & Partners, countries like Yemen, Bangladesh, the Palestinian Authority, Ethiopia, and Libya have passports ranked higher than Pakistan’s.
Citizens of these countries can travel to 38 countries without a visa, while Pakistani passport holders can only visit 33 countries visa-free. It’s worth noting that in last year’s report by Henley & Partners, Pakistan was ranked as the fourth weakest passport, jointly placed at the 92nd position with Yemen and Somalia, but this year it has dropped even further to 103rd position.
Henley & Partners’ list also ranks Afghanistan’s passport as the weakest, allowing its citizens visa-free access to only 26 countries. Meanwhile, Singapore’s passport has been ranked as the strongest globally, with its citizens able to travel to 195 countries without a visa.
In second place are France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Spain, whose citizens have visa-free access to 192 countries.
In third place are seven countries: Austria, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, South Korea, and Sweden, whose citizens can travel to 191 countries without a visa.
The United Kingdom, Belgium, Denmark, New Zealand, Norway, and Switzerland hold fourth place, with citizens able to access 190 countries visa-free. Fifth place goes to Australia and Portugal, whose passport holders can travel to 188 countries without a visa.
Greece and Poland are ranked sixth, while Canada, Hungary, and Malta are in the seventh position, allowing citizens of these countries to travel visa-free to 184 and 182 countries, respectively. The United States holds the eighth position, with its citizens able to travel to 180 countries without a visa.
At a time when citizens of countries with stronger passports enjoy the convenience of e-visas and visas on arrival,