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Earlier this year, a video by an Indian travel influencer complaining about India's weak passport went viral on social media.

He mentioned although nearby nations like Sri Lanka and Bhutan were more welcoming to travelers from India, securing travel permits to travel to most Western and European countries remained a challenge.

This dissatisfaction with India's poor passport strength found confirmation in the latest Henley Passport Index, which placed India at position eighty-five among 199 countries, five spots lower than last year.

Officials in India has not commented regarding these findings yet.

Nations like Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size compared to India – which is the world's fifth biggest economy – hold better positions in the ranking in the seventies range, respectively.

Actually, the country's position in the past decade has hovered in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot in 2021. Such standings appear poor compared to Asian nations such as Singapore, Japan and South Korea, which have consistently held leading ranks.

What Passport Strength Measures

Passport strength reflects a nation's soft power and global influence. It also translates into better mobility for its citizens, boosting business and educational prospects. Limited passport power means more paperwork, higher visa costs, fewer travel privileges and extended processing periods for travel.

But despite the decline in the rank, the number of countries providing visa-free travel for Indian citizens has actually increased in the past decade or so.

For example, eight years ago – when the current administration's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power – 52 countries offered visa-free access to Indians with the passport ranked 76th in the ranking.

The following year, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then improved to 80th over the past two years, dropping again to the eighty-fifth spot currently. At the same time, countries allowing visa-free travel to Indian citizens grew from fifty-two eight years ago to sixty last year and sixty-two this year.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The number of nations allowing visa-free entry in 2025 (fifty-seven) exceeds what it was in 2015 (fifty-two), yet the country's position during both periods is 85. So, why is that?

Experts say that a primary factor is the increasingly competitive landscape in international travel – indicating that countries are forming more travel partnerships to benefit their citizens and economic growth. According to recent analysis, the worldwide mean number of destinations travellers are able to access without visas has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 109 in 2025.

For example, The Chinese passport has increased the number of visa-free countries available to its citizens from fifty to eighty-two 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 – which was ranked at seventy-seventh place in July – dropped to the 85th position this autumn after losing access to two countries.

Additional Factors 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 openness to accepting travelers from abroad.

For instance, the American passport has fallen from the top ten currently holding twelfth place – its lowest ever – due to its increasingly insular stance in global affairs.

The diplomat recalls that during the seventies, Indian citizens had visa-free access to many Western and European countries, though this shifted following Khalistan movement in the 1980s. Subsequent political upheavals have further chipped away at India's image as a stable, democratic country.

"Numerous nations are also becoming increasingly wary of immigrants," he stated. "India has a large quantity of people migrating to other countries or overstaying their visas and that interferes with the country's reputation."

Factors like how secure of a national passport and immigration processes also contribute in gaining visa-free entry to foreign nations.

Security and Technological Improvements

India's passport faces ongoing security risks. In 2024, law enforcement arrested over two hundred individuals for alleged passport and visa irregularities. The country also has complex immigration processes with lengthy timelines for visa approvals.

The diplomat says that technological advances, like India's recently-launched digital passport or e-passport, can improve security and ease the immigration process. This electronic document includes a microchip that stores biometric information, making it harder to counterfeit or alter the passport.

But, increased diplomatic efforts and travel agreements remain key to boosting the global mobility of Indians and, by extension, India's passport ranking.