Most powerful passport of 2023 has been revealed and owning it comes with huge advantages

The world’s most powerful passports for 2023 have been revealed with a new country claiming the top spot.

The annual Henley Passport Index ranks passports according to ‘the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa’ - the index is based around data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The passport power rankings from Henley & Partners judge that a passport which can get you into a country without much trouble is worth one point, and you also get a point if you can secure a visa, visitor's permit or an electronic travel authority (ETA) on arrival when entering a destination.

Basically, for each country where you can show up with just your passport and get in, even if it takes a bit of sorting out some other documents when you get there, then it's worth a point.

If you absolutely have to have other paperwork sorted before you travel then the passport doesn't get a point.

Last year, Japan was in the top spot with 193 points.

Joshua Woroniecki/Pixabay

However, this year, Japan has slipped to second place with 191 points.

Third place is jointly held by Finland, France, Germany, Italy, South Korea, Spain and Sweden with 190.

While the most powerful passport for 2023 is Singapore with 193 points.

The UK sits in fourth place on 189 points, alongside Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

Fifth place, with 188 points, goes to Belgium, Malta, Norway and Portugal.

Sixth, with 187 points, is Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland; followed by Canada, Czech Republic, Greece, Poland and the US on 186.

Hungary sits in the eight spot, with 185 points; Lithuania is ninth with 184 points; while Estonia, Latvia, Slovakia and Slovenia round out the top 10 on 182.

The rankings also revealed the least powerful passports.

Pexels/​​Ekaterina Belinskaya

Afghanistan is in last place with just 27 points, Syria is in 105th with 28 points and Iraq comes in at 104th with 30 points.

Rounding out the bottom five is Pakistan with 33 points and Yemen with 34 points.

Dr Christian H. Kaelin, chairman of Henley & Partners and inventor of the index told Traveller: “Much more than just a travel document that defines our freedom of movement, a strong passport also provides significant financial freedoms regarding international business opportunities and investment.

"Global connectivity and access have become indispensable features for creating and preserving wealth, and its value will only grow as geopolitical volatility and regional instability increase.”