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In recent months, a video by an Indian travel influencer expressing frustration over India's weak passport gained massive traction across digital platforms.

He mentioned that while neighbouring countries such as Sri Lanka and Bhutan offered easier access of Indian tourists, obtaining visas to travel to most Western and European countries continued to be difficult.

Such concerns regarding the limited global access of Indian passports found confirmation in recent global passport ranking, which placed the country in the 85th spot out of nearly two hundred nations, five spots lower than last year.

Officials in India have not issued a statement regarding these findings yet.

Countries including Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan with much smaller economies than India – a nation that is the world's fifth biggest economy – hold better positions in the ranking in the seventies range, respectively.

Actually, India's rank in the past decade has hovered in the 80s, falling to ninetieth place in 2021. These rankings appear poor compared to other Asian countries such as Singapore, Japan and South Korea, which have consistently held leading ranks.

Global Passport Power Measures

Passport strength indicates a nation's soft power and global influence. It also translates into better mobility for passport holders, boosting business and educational prospects. Limited passport power results in additional documentation, higher visa costs, fewer travel privileges and longer waiting times for travel.

However, even with the decline in the rank, the count of nations providing visa-free travel to Indians has grown in the past decade or so.

For example, in 2014 – the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party came to power – 52 countries provided visa-free access to Indians and its passport at seventy-sixth position in the ranking.

A year later, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then rose to 80th in 2023 and 2024, dropping again to the eighty-fifth spot currently. Meanwhile, visa-free destinations to Indian citizens increased from fifty-two eight years ago to 60 in 2023 and sixty-two this year.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The count of visa-free destinations in 2025 (57) is higher than what it was eight years ago (fifty-two), yet the country's position for both these years remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Experts say that a major reason involves growing competition in global mobility – indicating that nations are entering into more travel partnerships for their populations' advantage and economic growth. According to a 2025 report, the global average number of destinations people can visit without visas has almost doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to one hundred nine currently.

For example, The Chinese passport has expanded the number of visa-free destinations its citizens can travel to from 50 to 82 over the last ten years. As a result, its position on the index has improved from ninety-fourth to sixtieth in that same duration.

Meanwhile, India – previously positioned at seventy-seventh place during summer – fell to the 85th position this autumn after losing access of two nations.

Other Influences Impacting Passport Power

An ex-diplomat from India says multiple elements that affect the strength of a country's passport, like its economic and political stability as well as its receptiveness to accepting travelers from other countries.

For instance, the American passport has fallen of the top 10 and now occupies the 12th position – a historic low – because of its more inward-looking approach in global affairs.

The diplomat recalls how in the 1970s, Indians enjoyed visa-free travel to numerous European and Western nations, though this shifted following Khalistan movement during the eighties. Later political disturbances have continued to damage the country's reputation as a stable democracy.

"Numerous nations are also becoming increasingly wary of immigrants," the diplomat added. "The country possesses a large quantity of citizens emigrating to other countries or remaining beyond visa limits and that interferes with the national image."

Factors such as how secure of a national passport and its immigration procedures also contribute to obtaining visa-free entry to foreign nations.

Enhanced Security Measures

The Indian passport faces ongoing security risks. Last year, authorities detained over two hundred individuals for alleged passport and visa irregularities. India is also known for cumbersome immigration procedures with lengthy timelines of visa processing.

The former ambassador says that technological advances, like India's recently-launched electronic passport or e-passport, may enhance safety and ease the immigration process. This electronic document contains a microchip that stores biometric information, increasing difficulty to forge or tamper with the document.

However, increased diplomatic efforts and travel partnerships remain key to boosting the global mobility of Indians and, by extension, the Indian passport's global position.