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Earlier this year, an online clip from a popular travel content creator expressing frustration over the limited power of the Indian passport went viral across digital platforms.

He mentioned that while neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka and Bhutan offered easier access of travelers from India, securing travel permits 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 at position eighty-five among 199 countries, five spots lower than last year.

The Indian government has not commented regarding these findings yet.

Countries like Rwanda, Ghana and Azerbaijan with much smaller economies than India – which is the world's fifth biggest economy – hold better positions on the index in the seventies range, respectively.

Actually, India's rank in the past decade has hovered in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot in 2021. These rankings are dismal when measured against Asian nations like Singapore, Japan and South Korea, which have consistently held leading ranks.

Global Passport Power Indicates

The power of a passport indicates a country's global influence and global influence. This leads to enhanced travel freedom for its citizens, improving commercial and learning opportunities. Limited passport power results in more paperwork, higher visa costs, fewer travel privileges and longer waiting times when journeying.

But despite the drop in position, the number of countries providing visa-free travel to Indians has grown over the last ten years.

As an instance, in 2014 – the year the current administration's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power – fifty-two nations provided visa-free access to Indians with the passport at seventy-sixth position on the index.

The following year, it fell to eighty-fifth place, then rose to eightieth in 2023 and 2024, declining once more to the 85th position this year. At the same time, visa-free destinations to Indian citizens increased from fifty-two eight years ago to sixty last year and 62 in 2024.

Increasing Worldwide Travel Competition

The count of nations allowing visa-free entry this year (57) is higher than the number eight years ago (52), but India's rank during both periods is 85. So, why is that?

Experts say that a primary factor is the increasingly competitive landscape in global mobility – indicating that countries are entering into more travel partnerships for their populations' advantage and their economies. As per a 2025 report, the worldwide mean number of destinations travellers are able to access without visas has almost doubled from fifty-eight nineteen years ago to 109 in 2025.

For example, China has increased the number of visa-free countries its citizens can travel to from 50 to 82 over the last ten years. As a result, its rank on the index has enhanced from 94th to 60th during the same time period.

In comparison, The Indian passport – previously positioned at seventy-seventh place during summer – dropped to the 85th position this autumn following the loss of two nations.

Additional Factors Impacting Passport Power

An ex-diplomat from India says there are other factors influencing a nation's passport power, like economic and political conditions as well as its openness to welcoming citizens from other countries.

For example, the American passport has dropped out of the top 10 currently holding the 12th position – a historic low – due to its increasingly insular stance in global affairs.

The former ambassador recalls that during the seventies, Indian citizens had visa-free travel to numerous European and Western nations, but that changed following Sikh separatist movement in the 1980s. Later political disturbances have continued to damage the country's reputation as a stable democracy.

"Many countries are growing increasingly wary of immigrants," he stated. "The country possesses a large quantity of people migrating to other countries or overstaying their visas affecting the country's reputation."

Elements such as how secure of a national passport and immigration processes also play a role in gaining visa-free entry to foreign nations.

Enhanced Security Measures

India's passport remains vulnerable to security threats. In 2024, law enforcement detained over two hundred individuals for alleged passport and visa irregularities. India is also known for cumbersome immigration procedures and a slow pace for visa approvals.

The diplomat says that new technologies, such as the newly introduced electronic passport or e-passport, may enhance safety and streamline immigration. This electronic document contains a small chip that stores biometric information, making it harder to counterfeit or alter the document.

But, increased diplomatic efforts and travel agreements remain key to boosting international travel freedom of Indians and consequently, India's passport ranking.