The Reasons Behind the Indian Passport Continues to Drop in Worldwide Standing

Earlier this year, a video by a popular travel content creator expressing frustration over the limited power of the Indian passport went viral on social media.

He mentioned that while nearby nations like Bhutan and Sri Lanka were more welcoming of travelers from India, securing travel permits for visiting most Western and European countries remained a challenge.

This dissatisfaction regarding India's poor passport strength found confirmation in recent global passport ranking, which placed the country at position eighty-five among nearly two hundred nations, a decline of five positions compared to the previous year.

The Indian government have not issued a statement regarding these findings so far.

Countries like Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size compared to India – which is the world's fifth biggest economy – hold better positions in the ranking in the seventies range, in that order.

Actually, India's rank over the last ten years has hovered around the eighties, falling to ninetieth place in 2021. Such standings are dismal when measured against other Asian countries such as Singapore, Japan and South Korea, which have consistently held top positions.

Global Passport Power Measures

The power of a passport reflects a nation's soft power and international standing. This leads to enhanced travel freedom for its citizens, boosting business and learning opportunities. Limited passport power results in additional documentation, increased visa expenses, fewer travel privileges and longer waiting times when journeying.

But despite the decline in the rank, the count of nations offering visa-free access to Indians has actually increased in the past decade or so.

For example, in 2014 – when Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) assumed office – fifty-two nations provided visa-free travel for Indian passport holders with the passport at seventy-sixth position in the ranking.

The following year, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then improved to eightieth over the past two years, declining once more to the eighty-fifth spot this year. At the same time, visa-free destinations to Indian citizens increased from fifty-two eight years ago to sixty last year and 62 in 2024.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The count of nations allowing visa-free entry this year (fifty-seven) is higher than what it was in 2015 (fifty-two), yet India's rank for both these years is 85. What explains this situation?

Experts say that a major reason involves growing competition in global mobility – meaning nations are forming additional travel agreements to benefit their citizens and economic growth. According to recent analysis, the worldwide mean count of countries people can visit without visas has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 109 in 2025.

As an illustration, China has expanded the number of visa-free countries its citizens can travel to from fifty to eighty-two in the past decade. As a result, its position in the ranking has improved from ninety-fourth to sixtieth in that same duration.

Meanwhile, India – previously positioned 77th on the index during summer – dropped to eighty-fifth place this autumn following the loss of two nations.

Additional Factors Affecting Passport Strength

A former Indian ambassador says multiple elements that affect the strength of a country's passport, including economic and political conditions plus its receptiveness to welcoming citizens from abroad.

For instance, the American passport has dropped out of the top 10 and now occupies the 12th position – a historic low – because of its increasingly insular stance in global affairs.

The former ambassador recalls that during the seventies, Indian citizens had visa-free travel to many Western and European countries, but that changed following Sikh separatist movement during the eighties. Subsequent political upheavals have further chipped away at India's image as a stable democracy.

"Numerous nations are growing more cautious regarding migrants," the diplomat added. "The country possesses a large quantity of citizens emigrating to other countries or overstaying their visas and that interferes with the country's reputation."

Elements such as the security level a country's passport is and its immigration procedures also play a role in gaining visa-free access to foreign nations.

Security and Technological Improvements

The Indian passport faces ongoing security threats. In 2024, authorities detained over two hundred individuals for alleged visa and passport fraud. The country also has cumbersome immigration procedures with lengthy timelines for visa approvals.

The diplomat indicated that technological advances, such as the newly introduced digital passport or e-passport, may enhance safety and streamline immigration. This electronic document contains a small chip holding biometric data, increasing difficulty to counterfeit or alter the document.

However, more diplomatic outreach and travel partnerships remain key to boosting the global mobility of Indians and, by extension, the Indian passport's global position.