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In recent months, a video from a popular travel content creator expressing frustration over the limited power of the Indian passport went viral on social media.

He mentioned that while neighbouring countries such as Sri Lanka and Bhutan offered easier access of travelers from India, obtaining visas for visiting many nations in Europe and the West continued to be difficult.

Such concerns with India's poor passport strength found confirmation in the latest Henley Passport Index, ranking the country in the 85th spot out of 199 countries, a decline of five positions compared to the previous year.

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

Countries including Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size compared to India – a nation that is the world's fifth biggest economy – hold better positions on the index in the seventies range, respectively.

Actually, India's rank in the past decade has remained around the eighties, even dipping to the 90th spot two years ago. These rankings appear poor when measured against Asian nations such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore, all maintaining leading ranks.

Global Passport Power Indicates

Passport strength indicates a nation's soft power and international standing. It also translates into enhanced travel freedom for passport holders, improving commercial and educational prospects. Limited passport power results in more paperwork, higher visa costs, fewer travel privileges and longer waiting times for travel.

However, even with the drop in position, the count of nations providing visa-free travel to Indians has actually increased over the last ten years.

As an instance, in 2014 – the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party assumed office – fifty-two nations offered visa-free travel to Indians with the passport ranked 76th in the ranking.

The following year, it tumbled to the 85th position, then rose to eightieth over the past two years, declining once more to the eighty-fifth spot currently. Meanwhile, countries allowing visa-free travel to Indian citizens increased from fifty-two eight years ago to sixty last year and 62 in 2024.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The number of nations allowing visa-free entry in 2025 (57) exceeds what it was eight years ago (52), yet the country's position for both these years remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Analysts note that a major reason involves growing competition in international travel – indicating that nations are forming more travel partnerships to benefit their citizens and their economies. As per recent analysis, the global average number of destinations travellers are able to access without visas has almost doubled from 58 in 2006 to 109 in 2025.

As an illustration, The Chinese passport has expanded its count of visa-free destinations its citizens can travel to from 50 to 82 over the last ten years. As a result, its rank on the index has improved from 94th to 60th during the same time period.

In comparison, India – which was ranked 77th on the index during summer – dropped to the 85th position this autumn following the loss of two nations.

Other Influences Impacting Passport Power

An ex-diplomat from India notes there are other factors that affect the strength of a country's passport, including economic and political conditions plus its receptiveness to accepting travelers from abroad.

For example, the US passport has fallen from the top ten and now occupies the 12th position – its lowest ever – because of its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The former ambassador recalls how in the 1970s, Indian citizens had visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, though this shifted after the Sikh separatist movement during the eighties. Subsequent political upheavals have continued to damage the country's reputation as a stable, democratic country.

"Many countries are also becoming increasingly wary of immigrants," he stated. "The country possesses a high number of citizens emigrating to other countries or overstaying their visas affecting the country's reputation."

Factors like the security level a country's passport is and immigration processes also contribute in gaining visa-free entry to foreign nations.

Enhanced Security Measures

India's passport remains vulnerable to security threats. In 2024, authorities arrested 203 people for suspected passport and visa irregularities. The country also has cumbersome immigration procedures and a slow pace for visa approvals.

The former ambassador indicated that technological advances, such as the newly introduced digital passport or e-passport, can improve security and ease the immigration process. The e-passport contains a small chip holding biometric information, making it harder to forge or tamper with the passport.

However, increased diplomatic efforts and travel agreements continue essential for enhancing the global mobility for Indian citizens and consequently, India's passport ranking.