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Earlier this year, an online clip by a popular travel content creator complaining about the limited power of the Indian passport gained massive traction across digital platforms.

The influencer stated that while neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka and Bhutan offered easier access of Indian tourists, securing travel permits for visiting many nations in Europe and the West continued to be difficult.

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

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

Countries like Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan with much smaller economies compared to India – which is the world's fifth biggest economy – are ranked higher in the ranking at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, respectively.

In fact, the country's position over the last ten years has hovered in the 80s, falling to ninetieth place in 2021. Such standings are dismal compared to Asian nations like Singapore, Japan and South Korea, which have consistently held top positions.

What Passport Strength Indicates

Passport strength reflects a country's global influence and global influence. This leads to better mobility for its citizens, improving commercial and learning opportunities. Limited passport power results in more paperwork, higher visa costs, reduced travel benefits and longer waiting times for travel.

But despite the drop in position, the count of nations offering visa-free access for Indian citizens has actually increased in the past decade or so.

As an instance, in 2014 – when Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power – fifty-two nations provided visa-free access for Indian passport holders and its passport ranked 76th in the ranking.

The following year, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then rose to 80th in 2023 and 2024, declining once more to the 85th position this year. At the same time, countries allowing visa-free travel for Indians grew from fifty-two eight years ago to 60 in 2023 and 62 in 2024.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The count of nations allowing visa-free entry this year (57) exceeds the number in 2015 (fifty-two), yet the country's position during both periods remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Experts say that a primary factor is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – indicating that nations are entering into more travel partnerships for their populations' advantage and their economies. As per recent analysis, the worldwide mean count of countries travellers are able to access visa-free has almost doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to one hundred nine currently.

As an illustration, The Chinese passport has expanded the number of visa-free countries its citizens can travel to from 50 to 82 in the past decade. Consequently, its position on the index has improved from 94th to 60th in that same duration.

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

Additional Factors Affecting Passport Strength

An ex-diplomat from India notes multiple elements that affect a nation's passport power, like economic and political conditions as well as its openness to accepting travelers from abroad.

For example, the American passport has dropped out of the top 10 and now occupies twelfth place – its lowest ever – due to its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The diplomat mentioned how in the 1970s, Indians enjoyed visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, but that changed after the Sikh separatist movement in the 1980s. Subsequent political upheavals have further chipped away the country's reputation as a stable, democratic country.

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

Factors like how secure a country's passport is and immigration processes also contribute in gaining visa-free access to foreign nations.

Security and Technological Improvements

The Indian passport remains vulnerable to security threats. In 2024, 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, such as the newly introduced electronic passport or e-passport, can improve security and streamline immigration. This electronic document includes a small chip holding biometric data, making it harder to counterfeit or alter the passport.

But, more diplomatic outreach and travel partnerships continue essential to boosting international travel freedom for Indian citizens and consequently, India's passport ranking.