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In recent months, a video by a popular travel content creator complaining about India's weak passport gained massive traction across digital platforms.

He mentioned that while nearby nations such as Bhutan and Sri Lanka offered easier access to travelers from India, obtaining visas to travel to most Western and European countries remained a challenge.

This dissatisfaction regarding the limited global access of Indian passports was reflected in the latest global passport ranking, which placed the country in the 85th spot out of 199 countries, a decline of five positions compared to the previous year.

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

Nations like 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 at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, in that order.

Actually, the country's position over the last ten years has hovered around the eighties, even dipping to the 90th spot in 2021. These rankings appear poor compared to Asian nations such as Singapore, Japan and South Korea, all maintaining leading ranks.

What Passport Strength Measures

Passport strength indicates a country's global influence and global influence. This leads to enhanced travel freedom for its citizens, boosting business and learning opportunities. A weak passport means additional documentation, increased visa expenses, reduced travel benefits and longer waiting times when journeying.

However, even with the decline in the rank, the number of countries offering visa-free access to Indians has actually increased over the last ten years.

As an instance, eight years ago – the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) assumed office – fifty-two nations provided visa-free access for Indian passport holders and its passport ranked 76th on the index.

The following year, it tumbled to eighty-fifth place, then rose to eightieth in 2023 and 2024, declining once more to the eighty-fifth spot currently. At the same time, visa-free destinations to Indian citizens increased from 52 in 2015 to 60 in 2023 and 62 in 2024.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The count of visa-free destinations in 2025 (fifty-seven) exceeds the number in 2015 (52), yet the country's position for both these years remains at eighty-fifth. What explains this situation?

Experts say that a major reason is the increasingly competitive landscape in international travel – meaning countries are forming additional travel agreements for their populations' advantage and economic growth. According to recent analysis, the worldwide mean number of destinations people can visit visa-free has nearly doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to 109 in 2025.

As an illustration, The Chinese passport has expanded its count of visa-free destinations available to its citizens from 50 to 82 in the past decade. Consequently, its rank on the index has enhanced from 94th to 60th in that same duration.

In comparison, India – which was ranked at seventy-seventh place during summer – fell to the 85th position in October following the loss of two nations.

Additional Factors Impacting Passport Power

A former Indian ambassador notes multiple elements influencing the strength of a country's passport, like economic and political conditions plus its openness to welcoming citizens from other countries.

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

The diplomat mentioned how in the 1970s, Indians enjoyed visa-free travel to many Western and European countries, but that changed following Khalistan movement in the 1980s. Later political disturbances have continued to damage the country's reputation as a stable, democratic country.

"Numerous nations are growing increasingly wary regarding migrants," he stated. "The country possesses a high number of citizens emigrating overseas or remaining beyond visa limits affecting the country's reputation."

Elements like the security level of a national passport and its immigration procedures also play a role to obtaining visa-free access to foreign nations.

Security and Technological Improvements

The Indian passport faces ongoing security threats. Last year, law enforcement arrested 203 people for suspected passport and visa irregularities. India is also known for complex immigration processes with lengthy timelines of visa processing.

The diplomat says that technological advances, like India's recently-launched electronic passport or e-passport, can improve security and streamline immigration. This electronic document includes a microchip that stores biometric data, increasing difficulty to counterfeit or alter the document.

But, increased diplomatic efforts and travel partnerships continue essential for enhancing international travel freedom for Indian citizens and, by extension, India's passport ranking.