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Earlier this year, an online clip from an Indian travel influencer expressing frustration over the limited power of the Indian passport went viral on social media.

The influencer stated that while nearby nations such as Sri Lanka and Bhutan were more welcoming to travelers from India, obtaining visas for visiting many nations in Europe and the West continued to be difficult.

Such concerns regarding India's poor passport strength was reflected in recent Henley Passport Index, ranking the country in the 85th spot out of 199 countries, a decline of five positions compared to the previous year.

The Indian government have not issued a statement regarding these findings yet.

Countries including Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size than India – a nation that is the world's fifth biggest economy – are ranked higher on the index at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, in that order.

Actually, India's rank over the last ten years has hovered around the eighties, falling to the 90th spot in 2021. These rankings appear poor when measured against Asian nations such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore, all maintaining top positions.

Global Passport Power Indicates

The power of a passport reflects a nation's soft power and global influence. This leads to enhanced travel freedom for its citizens, improving commercial and educational prospects. Limited passport power means more paperwork, increased visa expenses, fewer travel privileges and extended processing periods for travel.

But despite the drop in position, the number of countries offering visa-free access to Indians has grown in the past decade or so.

For example, eight years ago – when the current administration's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power – fifty-two nations provided visa-free access for Indian passport holders with the passport at seventy-sixth position in the ranking.

A year later, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then rose to 80th over the past two years, declining once more to the 85th position currently. Meanwhile, visa-free destinations for Indians grew from 52 in 2015 to 60 in 2023 and sixty-two this year.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The count of visa-free destinations in 2025 (fifty-seven) exceeds the number in 2015 (fifty-two), yet the country's position during both periods remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Analysts note that a major reason is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – meaning countries are forming additional travel agreements for their populations' advantage and their economies. As per a 2025 report, the worldwide mean number of destinations people can visit without visas has almost doubled from 58 in 2006 to one hundred nine currently.

For example, The Chinese passport has increased the number of visa-free destinations its citizens can travel to from fifty to eighty-two over the last ten years. As a result, its rank on the index has enhanced from ninety-fourth to sixtieth in that same duration.

Meanwhile, The Indian passport – previously positioned at seventy-seventh place in July – fell to eighty-fifth place in October after losing access of two nations.

Other Influences Affecting Passport Strength

An ex-diplomat from India notes multiple elements that affect a nation's passport power, like its economic and political stability plus its receptiveness to welcoming citizens from abroad.

For example, the US passport has fallen of the top 10 and now occupies the 12th position – a historic low – because of its more inward-looking approach in world politics.

The former ambassador mentioned how in the 1970s, Indian citizens had visa-free travel to numerous European and Western nations, but that changed after the Khalistan movement during the eighties. Later political disturbances have further chipped away at India's image as a stable, democratic country.

"Numerous nations are growing increasingly wary of immigrants," he stated. "The country possesses a high number of citizens emigrating overseas or overstaying their visas affecting the country's reputation."

Elements such as the security level a country's passport is and immigration processes also contribute in gaining visa-free access to other countries.

Security and Technological Improvements

India's passport remains vulnerable to security risks. Last year, law enforcement detained over two hundred individuals for alleged visa and passport fraud. The country also has complex immigration processes and a slow pace of visa processing.

The former ambassador indicated that technological advances, such as the newly introduced digital passport or e-passport, may enhance safety and streamline immigration. This electronic document includes a small chip that stores biometric information, increasing difficulty to counterfeit or alter the passport.

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