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

He mentioned although neighbouring countries such as Bhutan and Sri Lanka were more welcoming to travelers from India, obtaining visas to travel to most Western and European countries continued to be difficult.

Such concerns regarding India's poor passport strength found confirmation in the latest Henley Passport Index, ranking the country at position eighty-five among 199 countries, five spots lower than last year.

Officials in India have not issued a statement on the report yet.

Nations including Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size compared to India – which is the world's fifth biggest economy – are ranked higher on the index at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, respectively.

In fact, India's rank over the last ten years has hovered in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot two years ago. Such standings appear poor compared to Asian nations such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore, all maintaining leading ranks.

Global Passport Power Indicates

The power of a passport indicates a nation's soft power and global influence. This leads to better mobility for its citizens, boosting business and learning opportunities. A weak passport results in more paperwork, increased visa expenses, reduced travel benefits and extended processing periods for travel.

But despite the drop in position, the number of countries providing visa-free travel for Indian citizens has grown over the last ten years.

For example, eight years ago – when the current administration's ruling party came to power – fifty-two nations offered visa-free travel to Indians with the passport at seventy-sixth position on the index.

A year later, it tumbled to eighty-fifth place, then rose to 80th in 2023 and 2024, dropping again to the eighty-fifth spot currently. At the same time, countries allowing visa-free travel to Indian citizens grew from 52 in 2015 to 60 in 2023 and 62 in 2024.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The number of nations allowing visa-free entry in 2025 (57) is higher than the number eight years ago (52), yet the country's position for both these years is 85. So, why is that?

Experts say that a major reason is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – meaning nations are entering into more travel partnerships for their populations' advantage and economic growth. As per recent analysis, the global average count of countries people can visit visa-free has nearly doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to 109 in 2025.

As an illustration, China has increased the number of visa-free countries available to its citizens from fifty to eighty-two in the past decade. As a result, its position in the ranking has enhanced from 94th to 60th during the same time period.

Meanwhile, India – previously positioned 77th on the index during summer – dropped to the 85th position this autumn following the loss to two countries.

Additional Factors Impacting Passport Power

An ex-diplomat from India says there are other factors influencing a nation's passport power, including economic and political conditions plus its openness to accepting travelers from abroad.

For instance, the US passport has dropped out of the top 10 currently holding twelfth place – a historic low – due to its more inward-looking approach in global affairs.

The former ambassador recalls that during the seventies, Indian citizens had visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, though this shifted following Sikh separatist movement during the eighties. Later political disturbances have continued to damage at India's image as a stable, democratic country.

"Numerous nations are also becoming increasingly wary regarding migrants," the diplomat added. "The country possesses 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 its immigration procedures also play a role to obtaining visa-free access to other countries.

Enhanced Security Measures

India's passport remains vulnerable to security risks. In 2024, law enforcement detained over two hundred individuals for alleged visa and passport fraud. India is also known for complex immigration processes with lengthy timelines for visa approvals.

The former ambassador indicated that technological advances, such as the newly introduced digital passport or e-passport, can improve security and streamline immigration. This electronic document includes a microchip that stores biometric data, making it harder to forge or tamper with the document.

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