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Earlier this year, a video from an Indian travel influencer complaining about the limited power of the Indian passport gained massive traction across digital platforms.

He mentioned that while neighbouring countries such as Bhutan and Sri Lanka offered easier access to Indian tourists, securing travel permits to travel to many nations in Europe and the West remained a challenge.

Such concerns regarding India's poor passport strength found confirmation in recent global passport ranking, which placed the country in the 85th spot among nearly two hundred nations, a decline of five positions than last year.

The Indian government has not commented on the report so far.

Nations like Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan with much smaller economies compared to India – a nation that is the fifth-largest economy globally – are ranked higher on the index in the seventies range, respectively.

Actually, India's rank in the past decade has remained in the 80s, even dipping to ninetieth place in 2021. These rankings are dismal when measured against other Asian countries such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore, which have consistently held top positions.

What Passport Strength Measures

The power of a passport reflects a country's global influence and global influence. It also translates into enhanced travel freedom for passport holders, boosting business and educational prospects. A weak passport results in additional documentation, increased visa expenses, reduced travel benefits and longer waiting times for travel.

But despite the drop in position, the count of nations offering visa-free access for Indian citizens has grown in the past decade or so.

For example, eight years ago – the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party assumed office – fifty-two nations provided visa-free access to Indians and its passport ranked 76th on the index.

The following year, it fell to the 85th position, then rose to eightieth over the past two years, declining once more to the 85th position this year. Meanwhile, countries allowing visa-free travel for Indians increased from 52 in 2015 to sixty last year and sixty-two this year.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The number of nations allowing visa-free entry this year (57) exceeds the number eight years ago (52), yet the country's position during both periods remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Experts say that a major reason is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – indicating that nations are forming additional travel agreements to benefit their citizens and economic growth. According to recent analysis, 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.

As an illustration, China has increased the number of visa-free destinations available to its citizens from 50 to 82 in the past decade. As a result, its position in the ranking has improved from 94th to 60th in that same duration.

Meanwhile, The Indian passport – previously positioned at seventy-seventh place in July – dropped to the 85th position in October after losing access of two nations.

Additional Factors Affecting Passport Strength

A former Indian ambassador notes there are other factors that affect the strength of a country's passport, like economic and political conditions plus its openness to welcoming citizens from other countries.

For example, the US passport has fallen of the top 10 and now occupies the 12th position – its lowest ever – due to its increasingly insular stance in global affairs.

The former ambassador recalls how in the 1970s, Indians enjoyed visa-free travel to numerous European and Western nations, but that changed following Khalistan movement in the 1980s. Subsequent political upheavals have further chipped away the country's reputation as a stable, democratic country.

"Numerous nations are also becoming increasingly wary regarding migrants," he stated. "The country possesses a high number of citizens emigrating to other countries or remaining beyond visa limits and that interferes with the country's reputation."

Elements such as how secure a country's passport is and its immigration procedures also play a role in gaining visa-free entry to other countries.

Security and Technological Improvements

India's passport faces ongoing security risks. Last year, law enforcement detained 203 people for suspected passport and visa irregularities. The country also has cumbersome immigration procedures and a slow pace of visa processing.

The diplomat indicated that technological advances, like India's recently-launched digital passport or e-passport, can improve security and streamline immigration. This electronic document contains a small chip that stores biometric information, increasing difficulty to counterfeit or alter the document.

But, increased diplomatic efforts and travel partnerships continue essential to boosting international travel freedom of Indians and, by extension, India's passport ranking.