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Earlier this year, an online clip from a popular travel content creator expressing frustration over the limited power of the Indian passport went viral across digital platforms.

He mentioned although nearby nations like Bhutan and Sri Lanka were more welcoming to travelers from India, securing travel permits to travel to many nations in Europe and the West continued to be difficult.

Such concerns regarding India's poor passport strength found confirmation in the latest global passport ranking, ranking the country in the 85th spot out of nearly two hundred nations, five spots lower compared to the previous year.

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

Countries like Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size compared to India – a nation that is the fifth-largest economy globally – are ranked higher on the index in the seventies range, respectively.

In fact, India's rank over the last ten years has hovered in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot in 2021. These rankings are dismal when measured against other Asian countries such as Singapore, Japan and South Korea, all maintaining top positions.

Global Passport Power Measures

Passport strength reflects a nation's soft power and global influence. This leads to enhanced travel freedom for passport holders, boosting business and educational prospects. Limited passport power means additional documentation, increased visa expenses, fewer travel privileges and longer waiting times for travel.

But despite the drop in position, the count of nations offering visa-free access for Indian citizens has grown over the last ten years.

As an instance, in 2014 – when the current administration's ruling party came to power – fifty-two nations offered visa-free travel for Indian passport holders and its passport ranked 76th in the ranking.

The following year, it fell to the 85th position, then rose to 80th over the past two years, dropping again to the 85th position this year. At the same time, visa-free destinations to Indian citizens grew from 52 in 2015 to 60 in 2023 and 62 in 2024.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The number of nations allowing visa-free entry this year (57) is higher than the number eight years ago (fifty-two), but India's rank during both periods is 85. So, why is that?

Analysts note that a primary factor is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – indicating that nations are entering into more travel partnerships to benefit their citizens and economic growth. As per a 2025 report, the global average number of destinations people can visit without visas has nearly doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to 109 in 2025.

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

Meanwhile, India – previously positioned at seventy-seventh place in July – dropped to eighty-fifth place in October following the loss of two nations.

Additional Factors Impacting Passport Power

A former Indian ambassador notes there are other factors that affect a nation's passport power, like economic and political conditions as well as its receptiveness 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 – because of its increasingly insular stance in global affairs.

The former ambassador mentioned how in the 1970s, Indian citizens had visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, though this shifted following Sikh separatist movement during the eighties. Subsequent political upheavals have continued to damage at India's image as a stable democracy.

"Numerous nations are growing increasingly wary of immigrants," he stated. "India has a large quantity of people migrating to other countries or overstaying their visas and that interferes with the country's reputation."

Factors such as the security level of a national passport and immigration processes also play a role in gaining visa-free access to other countries.

Security and Technological Improvements

The Indian passport remains vulnerable to security risks. In 2024, law enforcement detained 203 people for alleged passport and visa irregularities. India is also known for complex immigration processes and a slow pace of visa processing.

The diplomat indicated that new technologies, like India's recently-launched electronic passport or e-passport, can improve security and ease the immigration process. This electronic document contains a microchip that stores biometric information, increasing difficulty to counterfeit or alter the document.

But, more diplomatic outreach and travel agreements continue essential to boosting international travel freedom of Indians and consequently, the Indian passport's global position.