Washington: America’s credibility has taken a big blow. According to the latest data of Henley Passport Index, the American passport has been out of the list of top 10 most powerful passports in the world for the first time in 20 years. Now it has reached 12th position and is tied with Malaysia. The US passport, once ranked number 1, now offers visa-free or visa-on-arrival entry to only 180 countries. This decline is being considered a sign of America’s weakening influence in global soft power. At the same time, Asia-Pacific countries have once again won in passport power.
According to the Henley Passport Index, Singapore now has the most powerful passport in the world, offering visa-free entry to 193 countries. South Korea (190 destinations) is at second place and Japan (189) is at third place. At the same time, the traditional powerhouse countries of Europe – Germany, Italy and Spain – are also included in the top 5. Meanwhile, America’s slipping two places to 12th position is being considered a major change in the ranking of Global Travel Freedom.
Why did the status of American passport fall?
- There are many reasons behind the decline of the US passport – especially its foreign policy and lack of visa-reciprocity.
- Brazil recently ended visa-free entry for US citizens because the US did not provide a similar exemption for Brazilians.
- America was also not included in the new visa-free list of China and Vietnam.
- Additionally, countries such as Papua New Guinea, Myanmar, and Somalia implemented new e-Visa systems, further reducing the reach of US passports.
America lags behind in ‘openness’, the world is responding in the same manner
Data shows that even though American citizens get visa-free entry to 180 countries, America itself gives visa-free entry to citizens of only 46 countries. America is ranked 77th in the Henley Openness Index. This clearly means that the more America is becoming closed, the more other countries are also closing their doors to its citizens. This situation is the largest ‘reciprocal gap’ in the world after Australia.
China shows growth, diplomatic passport game moves ahead of America
While America’s rank is going down, China has registered a tremendous jump in passport power. China, which was ranked 94th in 2015, has now reached 64th position in 2025. In the last 10 years, China has achieved visa-free entry into 37 new countries.
China now offers visa-free access to 76 countries, 30 more than the US. Recently he has also added Russia to this list. This step clearly shows that Beijing is using its ‘Travel Diplomacy’ card very well, while Washington is lagging behind in its ‘Openness Policy’.
Competition for ‘second citizenship’ increases among Americans
The impact of the declining power of the US passport is now visible on the behavior of Americans as well. According to Henley & Partners report, US citizens are making the largest share in ‘Investment Migration Programs’ in 2025. By the third quarter of the year, applications from Americans were 67% more than in the entire previous year. This trend shows that many Americans now want to regain their ‘travel freedom’ through alternative citizenship or residency.