Why India's Indian Passport Continues to Drop in Worldwide Standing

In recent months, a video by a popular travel content creator expressing frustration over the limited power of the Indian passport gained massive traction across digital platforms.

He mentioned although neighbouring countries like Bhutan and Sri Lanka were more welcoming of Indian tourists, obtaining visas for visiting most Western and European countries remained a challenge.

Such concerns regarding India's poor passport strength was reflected in the latest Henley Passport Index, ranking India at position eighty-five among nearly two hundred nations, five spots lower compared to the previous year.

Officials in India have not issued a statement regarding these findings yet.

Nations including Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size compared to India – a nation that is the fifth-largest economy globally – are ranked higher in the ranking in the seventies range, in that order.

In fact, the country's position in the past decade has hovered around the eighties, even dipping to ninetieth place two years ago. Such standings appear poor when measured against Asian nations such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore, all maintaining leading ranks.

What Passport Strength Indicates

The power of a passport reflects a nation's soft power and global influence. This leads to better mobility for its citizens, improving commercial and learning opportunities. A weak passport results in additional documentation, increased visa expenses, reduced travel benefits and longer waiting times for travel.

However, even with the decline in the rank, the count of nations offering visa-free access to Indians has grown in the past decade or so.

For example, eight years ago – when Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party assumed office – fifty-two nations provided visa-free travel to Indians and its passport at seventy-sixth position in the ranking.

A year later, it tumbled to the 85th position, then rose to 80th in 2023 and 2024, declining once more to the 85th position currently. Meanwhile, visa-free destinations for Indians grew from fifty-two eight years ago to sixty last year and 62 in 2024.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The count of visa-free destinations in 2025 (57) exceeds what it was eight years ago (52), yet India's rank for both these years is 85. So, why is that?

Analysts note that a primary factor is the increasingly competitive landscape in international travel – meaning countries are entering into additional travel agreements for their populations' advantage and their economies. As per a 2025 report, the worldwide mean count of countries people can visit without visas has almost doubled from 58 in 2006 to 109 in 2025.

For example, The Chinese passport has expanded its count of visa-free countries its citizens can travel to from 50 to 82 in the past decade. As a result, its rank on the index has improved from ninety-fourth to sixtieth in that same duration.

In comparison, The Indian passport – previously positioned 77th on the index during summer – dropped to eighty-fifth place in October after losing access of two nations.

Other Influences Impacting Passport Power

An ex-diplomat from India says there are other factors that affect the strength of a country's passport, including economic and political conditions plus its openness to welcoming citizens from abroad.

For example, the US passport has dropped out from the top ten and now occupies twelfth place – its lowest ever – due to its more inward-looking approach in global affairs.

The former ambassador recalls how in the 1970s, Indian citizens had visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, though this shifted after the Khalistan movement in the 1980s. Later political disturbances have continued to damage the country's reputation as a stable democracy.

"Numerous nations are growing increasingly wary regarding migrants," he stated. "India has a large quantity of citizens emigrating overseas or remaining beyond visa limits affecting the national image."

Factors such as the security level a country's passport is and immigration processes also contribute to obtaining visa-free entry to other countries.

Security and Technological Improvements

The Indian passport remains vulnerable to security threats. Last year, law enforcement detained over two hundred individuals for alleged visa and passport fraud. India is also known for cumbersome immigration procedures with lengthy timelines for visa approvals.

The former ambassador says that technological advances, like India's recently-launched electronic passport or e-passport, may enhance safety and streamline immigration. The e-passport includes a small chip holding biometric information, increasing difficulty to counterfeit or alter the document.

But, more diplomatic outreach and travel partnerships continue essential for enhancing the global mobility of Indians and consequently, the Indian passport's global position.