Based on Henley & Partners’ 2016 visa restriction index, the Lebanese passport came out as one of the least powerful passports. The study ranks nations based on the number of countries their citizens can travel to visa-free. Germany, Sweden and the United States of America came out in first, second and third place, respectively. Germany has the most powerful passport in the world since its citizens can travel to 176 countries without the need of a visa. Syria, Pakistan, Iraq and Afghanistan are at the very bottom of the Henley & Partners Visa Restrictions Index since each only have visa-free access to less than 30 countries. Peru was the highest individual mover, gaining 15 places. Ghana showed the most negative movement, losing four places in one year. The countries that rank the highest are shown in blue, while those at the bottom are shown in yellow:
Dr. Christian H. Kälin, Chairman of Henley & Partners, said:
“There is still a huge disparity in the levels of travel freedom between countries, despite the world becoming seemingly more mobile and interdependent. Generally, visa requirements are a reflection of a country’s relationship with others, and take into account diplomatic relationships between countries, reciprocal visa arrangements, security risks, and the dangers of visa and immigration regulation violations”
Lebanon
As such, Lebanon shared the 96th position (out of the 104) with Ethiopia and South Sudan. North Korea shared the 94th spot with Djibouti. Only 11 countries did worse than us:
Nepal, Palestine and Sudan shared the 97th spot, Eritrea and Yemen at 98th, Libya (99th), Somalia (100th), Syria (101st), Pakistan (102nd), Iraq (103rd) and Afghanistan (104th).
I hope this is a humbling experience for us and a reminder why we need to vote in better representatives who can develop better diplomatic relations with other countries.
Full List
1 – Germany
2 – Sweden
3 – Denmark, Finland, Italy, Spain, United States
4 – Austria, Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, United Kingdom
5 – Ireland, Japan, New Zealand
6 – Canada, Greece, Portugal, Switzerland
7 – Australia, South Korea
8 – Iceland
9 – Czech Republic
10 – Hungary, Malta
11 – Lithuania
12 – Latvia, Liechtenstein, Slovakia, Slovenia
13 – Estonia, Malaysia
14 – Poland
15 – Monaco
16 – Cyprus
17 – Chile
18 – Brazil
19 – Andorra, San Marino
20 – Argentina, Bulgaria
21 – Croatia, Romania
22 – Hong Kong
23 – Brunei Darussalam
24 – Israel
25 – Barbados
26 – Mexico
27 – Bahamas
28 – Uruguay
29 – Seychelles
30 – Antigua and Barbuda, St. Kitts and Nevis
31 – Costa Rica, Taiwan, Vatican City
32 – Trinidad and Tobago
33 – Mauritius
34 – Venezuela
35 – Paraguay
36 – Macao, Panama, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines
37 – Grenada
38 – Honduras, United Arab Emirates
39 – El Salvador
40 – Dominica, Guatemala
41 – Peru
42 – Solomon Islands
43 – Serbia
44 – Samoa
45 – Vanuatu
46 – Marshall Islands, Nicaragua
47 – Tonga
48 – Macedonia, Tuvalu
49 – Kiribati
50 – Colombia, Montenegro
51 – Micronesia, Russian Federation
52 – Palau, Turkey
53 – Bosnia-Herzegovina
54 – Moldova
55 – Albania, South Africa
56 – Belize
57 – Ecuador, Timor-Leste
58 – Ukraine
59 – Guyana
60 – Kuwait, Maldives, Nauru
61 – Fiji
62 – Jamaica, Qatar
63 – Papua New Guinea
64 – Bolivia
65 – Botswana, Suriname
66 – Bahrain
67 – Kazakhstan, Namibia, Thailand
68 – Georgia, Kenya, Oman
69 – Saudi Arabia
70 – Belarus, Lesotho, Malawi
71 – Gambia, Swaziland
72 – Tanzania,
73 – Cape Verde, Tunisia, Zambia
74 – Azerbaijan
75 – Philippines, Uganda
76 – Cuba, Ghana
77 – Zimbabwe
78 – Armenia, Benin, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco
79 – Indonesia
80 – Burkina Faso, Dominican Republic, Mongolia
81 – Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone
82 – Mauritania
83 – Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal, Tajikistan, Togo, Uzbekistan
84 – Niger
85 – Bhutan, Chad, China, Mali, Rwanda
86 – Gabon, Haiti, Madagascar
87 – Guinea-Bissau, India, Turkmenistan, Algeria, Cambodia, Comoros, Egypt, Guinea, Laos
89 – Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea
90 – Angola, Cameroon, Vietnam
91 – Burundi, Nigeria
92 – Congo, Jordan, Liberia
93 – Myanmar
94 – Djibouti, North Korea
95 – Bangladesh, Iran
95 – Sri Lanka
96 – Ethiopia, Lebanon, South Sudan
97 – Nepal, Palestinian Territory, Sudan
98 – Eritrea, Yemen
99 – Libya
100 – Somalia
101 – Syria
102 – Pakistan
103 – Iraq
104 – Afghanistan
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