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In recent months, a video by a popular travel content creator expressing frustration over India's weak passport gained massive traction across digital platforms.

The influencer stated although nearby nations like Sri Lanka and Bhutan were more welcoming to Indian tourists, securing travel permits for visiting most Western and European countries continued to be difficult.

This dissatisfaction with India's poor passport strength was reflected in recent Henley Passport Index, which placed the country in the 85th spot among 199 countries, a decline of five positions than last year.

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

Nations like Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size than India – which is the fifth-largest economy globally – hold better positions in the ranking in the seventies range, respectively.

Actually, the country's position in the past decade has remained in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot two years ago. These rankings are dismal compared to other Asian countries such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore, which have consistently held leading ranks.

Global Passport Power Measures

Passport strength reflects a country's global influence and international standing. This leads to better mobility for passport holders, boosting business and educational prospects. Limited passport power means additional documentation, increased visa expenses, fewer travel privileges and extended processing periods when journeying.

But despite the drop in position, the count of nations providing visa-free travel for Indian citizens has grown in the past decade or so.

For example, eight years ago – when the current administration's ruling party came to power – 52 countries offered visa-free travel for Indian passport holders with the passport ranked 76th on the index.

A year later, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then rose to 80th in 2023 and 2024, dropping again to the eighty-fifth spot this year. Meanwhile, visa-free destinations for Indians grew from fifty-two eight years ago to 60 in 2023 and 62 in 2024.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The count of visa-free destinations this year (fifty-seven) is higher than the number in 2015 (52), yet India's rank for both these years remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Experts say that a primary factor involves growing competition in global mobility – meaning countries are forming additional travel agreements for their populations' advantage and their economies. As per recent analysis, the worldwide mean count of countries people can visit visa-free has almost doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to one hundred nine currently.

As an illustration, China has increased its count of visa-free destinations available to its citizens from 50 to 82 over the last ten years. Consequently, its rank in the ranking has enhanced from 94th to 60th during the same time period.

In comparison, The Indian passport – previously positioned at seventy-seventh place in July – fell to the 85th position in October following the loss to two countries.

Additional Factors Affecting Passport Strength

An ex-diplomat from India says there are other factors that affect a nation's passport power, like its economic and political stability plus its receptiveness to welcoming citizens from other countries.

For instance, the American passport has fallen of the top 10 and now occupies twelfth place – its lowest ever – because of its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The diplomat recalls how in the 1970s, Indian citizens had visa-free travel to numerous European and Western nations, though this shifted after the Sikh separatist movement in the 1980s. Subsequent political upheavals have further chipped away the country's reputation as a stable democracy.

"Numerous nations are also becoming more cautious of immigrants," the diplomat added. "India has a large quantity of people migrating to other countries or overstaying their visas affecting the national image."

Factors such as how secure of a national passport and its immigration procedures also play a role to obtaining visa-free entry to foreign nations.

Enhanced Security Measures

The Indian passport faces ongoing security threats. In 2024, law enforcement 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 electronic passport or e-passport, may enhance safety and ease the immigration process. The e-passport contains a small chip holding biometric data, increasing difficulty to counterfeit or alter the passport.

However, increased diplomatic efforts and travel partnerships remain key to boosting international travel freedom for Indian citizens and, by extension, India's passport ranking.