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The U.S. has fallen out of the 'top 10' of the world's most powerful passports for the first time since the creation of the 'ranking' by the consultancy Henley & Partners. According to a recent report, the document went from occupying the 10th place to 12th, tying with Malaysia.
This index uses data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to classify countries according to the number of destinations their nationals can enter without a visa. In this sense, the U.S. passport allows visa-free entry to 180 of the 227 global destinations.
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The historic fall seems to be a consequence of the harsh policies of President Donald Trump. According to the report, the decline began in April with Brazil's decision to require visas for Americans due to lack of reciprocity. Following this, the North American country was removed from the list of nations that do not need a visa for China. The same adjustments were made in Papua New Guinea and Myanmar, as well as in Somalia and Vietnam more recently. "The weakening of the US passport's strength over the last decade is not just a restructuring in the rankings: it indicates a fundamental shift in global mobility and soft power dynamics. Nations that embrace openness and cooperation are moving forward strongly, while those that rely on past privileges are falling behind," said Christian Kaelin, creator of the 'ranking'.China's Strategy
On the other hand, the U.S. only allows visa-free entry to 46 countries, making it one of the nations with the most disparity between visa-free access and its openness. In contrast, the report highlights the changes implemented by China, whose passport has had one of the largest ascents in the index in the last decade, moving from 94th to 64th place. Similarly, recent measures such as the visa exemption for Russia demonstrate its efforts towards greater openness. "Trump's return to power has generated new trade conflicts that weaken the mobility of the United States, while China's strategic opening boosts its global influence," said Tim Klatte, partner at the firm Grant Thornton China.- The 'top 10' most powerful passports in the world are led by Singapore, South Korea, and Japan, followed by Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, and Switzerland in fourth place. Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, and the Netherlands occupy the fifth position, while Greece, Hungary, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden are in the sixth
- In seventh place are Australia, the Czech Republic, Malta, and Poland. The passports of Croatia, Estonia, Slovakia, Slovenia, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom follow in eighth position, while Canada occupies the ninth and Latvia and the Principality of Liechtenstein the tenth
