Outpacing U.S. and UK, Germans have emerged as the most powerful passport holder in the world with highest number of visa-free access.
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The Danish passport was actually ranked number one for many years but started to slide in 2013.
Those with German citizenship enjoy the most mobility when it comes to crossing boarders, says Henley and Partners’ 2016 Visa Restrictions Index. A larger group of countries sit in third place, with Finland, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom all having visa-free access to 175 countries.
For tips and tricks on how to do well, some countries might want to sneak a peak at the Portuguese: after launching the Golden Visa Program investor migration scheme in 2012, they clambered up to 6th place this year. The US was tied in its new position with Denmark as well as Belgium and the Netherlands, all of which offer easy access to 174 places.
They can travel to 177 of 218 countries without a visa. Pakistan is second-last, with travel permitted to 29 countries, and Iraq is third from the bottom, restricted to 30 other countries.
“No country dropped more than three positions, indicating that overall, visa-free access is improving around the world”, Henley & Partners said in a statement.
The report has been released during an important time in history when the world faces the worst refugee crisis since the Second World War.
Hungary returned to the top 10, while Malaysia was bumped out. Afghan nationals are able to travel to just 25 countries without needing a visa.
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“Generally, visa requirements reflect strongly on each country’s relationships with others, and will take into account diplomatic relationships between the countries, reciprocal visa arrangements, security risks and the risks of visa and immigration rules violations”.
