Indian Passport Slips To 73rd Spot In Global Power Rank 2026, Loses Visa-On-Arrival Access To Five Countries

Indian Passport Ranking:  India's passport has dropped seven places in the latest Global Passport Power Rank 2026, according to the Passport Index by Arton Capital. India is now ranked 73rd, with a Mobility Score of 69. The UAE has the world's highest-ranked passport, while Afghanistan ranks at the bottom. The ranking measures how easily passport holders can travel to other countries without obtaining a visa in advance.

What Is the Global Passport Power Rank?

The Passport Index ranks passports based on their Mobility Score (MS). This score includes countries that passport holders can enter without a visa and countries where they can get a visa on arrival. A higher Mobility Score means passport holders have greater international travel access. The index, created and powered by Arton Capital, is updated as visa-free agreements and other travel rules change.

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UAE Has The World's Most Powerful Passport

The UAE has been ranked first in the latest Global Passport Power Rank, with a Mobility Score of 181. UAE passport holders can travel to 138 countries without a visa, get a visa on arrival in 43 countries and require a visa for 17 countries.

India's Passport Rank In 2026

India is ranked 73rd in the latest ranking, with a Mobility Score of 69. India shares the position with Zimbabwe, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Sao Tome and Principe, and Vietnam. Indian passport holders can travel to 25 countries without a visa, get a visa on arrival in 39 countries and require a visa for 129 countries.

India Drops Seven Places

Notably, India was ranked 66th in 2025, with a Mobility Score of 73. Last year, Indian passport holders had visa-free access to 25 countries, visa-on-arrival access to 44 countries, and required visas for 125 countries. Compared with 2025, India has now lost visa-on-arrival access to five countries and requires visas for four additional countries. Meanwhile, Afghanistan has the weakest passport in the latest ranking. It is placed 99th, with a Mobility Score of 35.

Government On Passport Rankings

The government had previously questioned the use of global passport rankings, saying that different organisations use their own criteria to rank passports. "The government is aware of some such ratings which are published by certain private institutions based on parameters unilaterally decided by them," Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said in a written response to the Lok Sabha on 31 July.

"In the absence of universally acceptable criteria to rank passports, there is no ranking system for passports at global level that can be taken as a standard," the government said.

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