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In recent months, an online clip from an Indian travel influencer complaining about the limited power of the Indian passport went viral across digital platforms.

The influencer stated although nearby nations such as Sri Lanka and Bhutan offered easier access of travelers from India, securing travel permits for visiting many nations in Europe and the West remained a challenge.

This dissatisfaction regarding India's poor passport strength found confirmation in recent Henley Passport Index, ranking the country in the 85th spot out of 199 countries, a decline of five positions than last year.

The Indian government has not commented on the report yet.

Nations including Rwanda, Ghana 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, the country's position over the last ten years has hovered in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot in 2021. Such standings are dismal when measured against Asian nations such as Singapore, Japan and South Korea, all maintaining leading ranks.

Global Passport Power Measures

The power of a passport indicates a nation's soft power and international standing. This leads to better mobility for its citizens, improving commercial and learning opportunities. Limited passport power means more paperwork, increased visa expenses, reduced travel benefits and longer waiting times when journeying.

However, even with the drop in position, the count of nations providing visa-free travel for Indian citizens has actually increased in the past decade or so.

As an instance, in 2014 – the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power – fifty-two nations provided visa-free travel to Indians and its passport ranked 76th on the index.

A year later, it tumbled to eighty-fifth place, then improved to eightieth over the past two years, declining once more to the eighty-fifth spot this year. At the same time, countries allowing visa-free travel for Indians grew from fifty-two eight years ago to sixty last year and sixty-two this year.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The number of nations allowing visa-free entry in 2025 (57) is higher than the number eight years ago (fifty-two), but the country's position during both periods is 85. So, why is that?

Analysts note that a major reason involves growing competition in global mobility – meaning nations are forming additional travel agreements to benefit their citizens and economic growth. According to recent analysis, the worldwide mean count of countries people can visit visa-free has nearly doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to 109 in 2025.

For example, China has expanded its count of visa-free countries available to its citizens from fifty to eighty-two in the past decade. As a result, its rank in the ranking has improved from 94th to 60th during the same time period.

Meanwhile, India – which was ranked at seventy-seventh place during summer – fell to eighty-fifth place this autumn after losing access to two countries.

Additional Factors Affecting Passport Strength

A former Indian ambassador says multiple elements that affect the strength of a country's passport, including its economic and political stability as well as its openness to welcoming citizens from abroad.

For instance, the US passport has dropped out of the top 10 and now occupies twelfth place – its lowest ever – because of its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The former ambassador recalls how in the 1970s, Indian citizens had visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, though this shifted after the Khalistan movement during the eighties. Subsequent political upheavals have further chipped away the country's reputation as a stable democracy.

"Many countries are growing more cautious regarding migrants," he stated. "India has a large quantity of people migrating to other countries or overstaying their visas and that interferes with the national image."

Elements such as how secure of a national passport and its immigration procedures also play a role in gaining visa-free access to other countries.

Enhanced Security Measures

The Indian passport faces ongoing security risks. Last year, law enforcement arrested over two hundred individuals for suspected visa and passport fraud. India is also known for cumbersome immigration procedures and a slow pace for visa approvals.

The former ambassador says that new technologies, such as the newly introduced digital passport or e-passport, may enhance safety and ease the immigration process. The e-passport includes a microchip that stores biometric data, making it harder to counterfeit or alter the document.

However, more diplomatic outreach and travel agreements continue essential to boosting international travel freedom for Indian citizens and consequently, India's passport ranking.