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In recent months, an online clip by a popular travel content creator complaining about the limited power of the Indian passport went viral across digital platforms.

The influencer stated although nearby nations like Bhutan and Sri Lanka offered easier access to Indian tourists, securing travel permits for visiting many nations in Europe and the West continued to be difficult.

Such concerns with India's poor passport strength was reflected in recent Henley Passport Index, ranking India in the 85th spot among nearly two hundred nations, a decline of five positions compared to the previous year.

Officials in India has not commented on the report so far.

Nations like Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size compared to India – which is the world's fifth biggest economy – hold better positions on the index at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, in that order.

Actually, India's rank in the past decade has hovered around the eighties, falling to the 90th spot two years ago. These rankings appear poor when measured against other Asian countries like Singapore, Japan and South Korea, all maintaining leading ranks.

What Passport Strength Indicates

The power of a passport reflects a nation's soft power and international standing. It also translates into better mobility for its citizens, improving commercial and educational prospects. Limited passport power means more paperwork, higher visa costs, fewer travel privileges and extended processing periods for travel.

However, even with the decline in the rank, the count of nations providing visa-free travel for Indian citizens has actually increased over the last ten years.

For example, in 2014 – the year the current administration's ruling party assumed office – fifty-two nations offered visa-free travel to Indians and its passport ranked 76th on the index.

The following year, it tumbled to the 85th position, then rose to 80th over the past two years, declining once more to the eighty-fifth spot this year. Meanwhile, countries allowing visa-free travel to Indian citizens increased from 52 in 2015 to 60 in 2023 and 62 in 2024.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The count of nations allowing visa-free entry in 2025 (fifty-seven) is higher than the number in 2015 (52), but India's rank during both periods remains at eighty-fifth. What explains this situation?

Analysts note that a primary factor is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – meaning countries are entering into additional travel agreements to benefit their citizens and economic growth. As per a 2025 report, the global average count of countries travellers are able to access visa-free has almost doubled from 58 in 2006 to one hundred nine currently.

As an illustration, The Chinese passport has expanded the number of visa-free destinations available to its citizens from 50 to 82 in the past decade. As a result, its rank on the index has improved from ninety-fourth to sixtieth in that same duration.

In comparison, The Indian passport – previously positioned 77th on the index in July – dropped to eighty-fifth place in October following the loss to two countries.

Other Influences Impacting Passport Power

An ex-diplomat from India says there are other factors influencing the strength of a country's passport, like its economic and political stability plus its openness to accepting travelers from abroad.

For example, the American passport has dropped out of the top 10 and now occupies the 12th position – a historic low – because of its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The diplomat mentioned that during the seventies, Indian citizens had visa-free travel to numerous European and Western nations, though this shifted following Sikh separatist movement in the 1980s. Later political disturbances have continued to damage at India's image as a stable democracy.

"Many countries are growing more cautious of immigrants," he stated. "India has a high number of people migrating overseas or overstaying their visas and that interferes with the country's reputation."

Elements such as the security level of a national passport and its immigration procedures also contribute to obtaining visa-free entry to foreign nations.

Enhanced Security Measures

The Indian passport remains vulnerable to security threats. In 2024, law enforcement arrested 203 people for suspected passport and visa irregularities. The country also has cumbersome immigration procedures with lengthy timelines of visa processing.

The former ambassador says that new technologies, such as the newly introduced electronic passport or e-passport, can improve security and ease the immigration process. This electronic document 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 of Indians and, by extension, the Indian passport's global position.