Best Passport rankings are out, and the list features a total of 157 countries. The results were quite surprising with Germany’s passport ranking as number one in the global ranking of world’s most powerful passport, whereas India ranks managed to stand at 78th position.
Out of 157 countries, Germany topped the list which means the country now has the accessibility of being visa-free for 157 destinations, while Singapore surpassed South Korea and became the highest ranked Asian passport with a visa-free destination score of 156, just below Germany.
India attained a visa-free score of 46, ahead of China and Pakistan which are ranked 58th and 94th respectively. Afghanistan’s is the least powerful passport with a visa-free score of just 23.
Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Somalia, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Sudan, Eritrea and Iran are the least powerful passports in the world
Coming to the details, the latest edition of the Arton Capital’s global ranking ‘Passport Index’ is based on cross-border access to national passports.
“The desire to improve one’s opportunity and security for their family transcends borders. As such, having a second citizenship has never been more relevant.”
The recently introduced ‘World Openness Score’ (WOS) tracks the progression of freedom of mobility across the globe. The WOS in 2016 was 17,925. A rapid growth is observed in the first month of 2017 that resulted in booming the score to 17,948.
Contrary to the WOS scores, a report from the organisation claimed:
“This trend shows opening of borders but will it continue? With the recent backlash against globalisation and ongoing immigration issues, the World Openness Score may be in danger of decline.”
On the other hand, people started craving for the second citizenship by paying loads of money. In recent years, citizenship by investment has become a $2 billion industry, with over 20,000 investors seeking a second residency or citizenship around the globe every year.