The advisory firm has released its Passport Index for Q2 of 2022, ranking determining which passports are the most powerful ones based on the visa-free access they provide to travel destinations.
The top 3 is occupied by the ‘usual suspects’: Japan, Singapore in the first place, Germany and South Korea following second and the third spot shared by Finland, Italy, Luxemburg and Spain.
Greece and Australia remain in the top 10,, with a slight change in Australia’s ranking compared to the last quarter of 2021.
Access to one more destination visa – free brings the Australian passport in par with the Greek one on no. 7.
The top 10 is as follows
Source: Henley Global
But beyond rankings that are not significantly different from one quarter to next, standing out in the latest index data is an analysis on the impact of the Russian - Ukrainian conflict on mobility and free travel.
CEO of Henley & Partners Dr. Juerg Steffen puts it down to the new “Iron Curtain” sending geopolitical shockwaves”.
Key points of his and other executives’ analysis include:
- Dual mobility enhancing security in an age of uncertainty
- Repatriation rights coming to the fore, a development also related to pandemic-induced travel regulations with different treatment of returning citizens to visa holders.
- A new order of things in mobility and travel freedom: The Ukrainian passport ranks among the biggest climbers of the last decade, with a record high ranking for 2022.
Source: Henley Global
- And since the EU emergency plan approval Ukrainians are allowed to live and work in any of its 27 member states for up to three years.
- In stark contrast, the Russian passport has effectively taken a downhill as part of sanction measures from the international community, with some experts predicting it will become “one of the biggest fallers in terms of visa-free access over the next few years.”
