Australia’s passport is one of the top ten most powerful in the world

People holding one of these passports, including the Aussie passport, have one of the most powerful documents in the world.

There are six countries that hold the most powerful passports in the world after they came equal first for the hottest travel documents for 2024.

Citizens of France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Singapore and Spain can enjoy visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to an incredible 194 destinations around the world — and because of this, they’ve topped the Henley Passport Index for 2024.

The Index is created by London-based global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners, using exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), covering 199 passports and 227 travel destinations.

And for the first time, six countries now top the list of Henley & Partners.

Germany, together with France, Italy and Spain hold the most powerful passports in the world after securing equal first in the Henley Passport Index for 2024.

Japan, for the sixth consecutive year, came out on top, with Singapore also creeping to first spot, from second last year.

But for the first time, four European countries have entered the top spot, with France, Germany, Italy and Spain coming equal first.

Meanwhile, Australia also scraped into the top 10, coming equal sixth alongside Czechia, New Zealand and Poland, with visa-free access or visa-on-arrival access to 189 countries (up from 188 last quarter).

For the first time, six countries now top the list of Henley & Partners with Japan and Singapore also making the cut. Japan is no stranger – it came first last year.

Some of the countries Aussies can travel to without a visa include Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Bahamas and Colombia.

Countries that require an E-Visa include Chile, Azerbeijan, Benin, Papua New Guinea and India, while destinations where a visa-on-arrival can be obtained include Samoa, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Zimbabwe.

Canada, Kenya, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the US and US Virgin Islands require Aussie visitors to have an ETA before entering.

South Korea shared second spot with Finland and Sweden.

Meanwhile, Finland and Sweden tied with South Korea in second place – with easy access to 193 destinations, while Austria, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands come third (with 192 destinations).

Belgium, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal and the United Kingdom secured fourth spot while Greece, Malta and Switzerland ranked fifth.

Australia came sixth, alongside Czechia, New Zealand and Poland, with visa-free access or visa-on-arrival access to 189 countries (up from 188 last quarter).

Over the past 10 years, The United Arab Emirates has continued to climb the ladder, adding 106 destinations to its visa-free score since 2014, and earning it 11th position this year.

Further down the list, Ukraine sits in 32nd place, followed by a number of Balkan countries including Serbia in 37th, North Macedonia in 45th, Montenegro in 46th and Albania in 48th.

Bosnia and Herzegovina and Georgia secured 50th place, Türkiye in 52nd, Belarus in 64th, Kosovo in 68th and Azerbaijan in 70th.

Meanwhile, Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan came 102nd, 103rd and 104th, respectively.

Christian H. Kaelin, chair of Henley & Partners and creator of the passport index, said the gap between those at the top and bottom of the index is now wider than ever.

“The average number of destinations travellers are able to access visa-free has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024,” Mr Kaelin said in a statement.

“However, the top-ranked countries are now able to travel to a staggering 166 more destinations visa-free than Afghanistan, which sits at the bottom of the ranking with access to just 28 countries without a visa.”

Syria has visa-free access to 29 destinations while Iraq can access 31 and Pakistan can access 34.

The Index comes following the Australian government’s move to hike the cost of the Aussie passport with fees set to increase 15 per cent from July 1 this year.

A 10-year adult passport currently costs $346 as of January 1 with an additional $52.50 expected to be added to the price mid year, seeing it reach almost $400.