The U.S. is not the only one tightening up its borders.
In a dramatic fall, the United States passport is now weaker than it has ever been.
The American passport has slipped to its lowest-ever position in the 20-year history of the Henley Passport Index.
Once the most powerful passport in the world, the U.S. is now clinging to the 10th spot — in a three-way tie with Iceland and Lithuania — a small Baltic nation with fewer people than Los Angeles County.
The Henley Passport Index — compiled by London-based migration consultancy Henley & Partners — is based on how many destinations a passport holder can enter without a visa.
And because the index counts ties as a single ranking, there are 33 countries with better global access than the U.S.
Back 2014, the U.S. took the crown for the No. 1 spot along with the United Kingdom in the annual ranking.
The decline of the U.S. passport has been consistent and steady, losing ground every year since then.
However, today, it’s dropped to the 10th spot because American travelers can only access 182 countries without a visa — four fewer than last year.
That’s 11 fewer compared to those with a Singapore passport — which tops the 2025 ranking with 193 visa-free destinations.
The second most powerful passports in the world are Japan and South Korea, which each provide access to 190 destinations without a visa
The EU member states of Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Spain are all tied at No.3.
Afghanistan is ranked last — its passport only grants visa-free access to 25 countries.
“Your passport is no longer just a travel document — it’s a reflection of your country’s diplomatic influence and international relationships,” Dr. Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners, said in a statement.
Even as many Western and Asian countries have strengthened their passport access through reciprocal diplomacy and visa-waiver agreements, the U.S. has increasingly imposed restrictions — both on inbound visitors and outbound travel.
While the U.S. continues to drop down the list, some nations have climbed more than 30 spots over the past decade through aggressive bilateral negotiations and improvements in openness.
The UAE, for example, leapt from No. 42 in 2015 to No. 8 in 2025 — the biggest jump of any country in the top 10 — and China rose 34 places from No. 94 to No. 60 over the last decade.
Once a passport to virtually anywhere, the U.S. travel document is increasingly less valuable these days.
Experts say the U.S. has largely failed to keep pace in negotiating new visa-free agreements, especially with moves made by the Trump administration.
The recent introduction of a controversial $250 “visa integrity fee” — which will apply to all visitors who are required to obtain non-immigrant visas to enter the U.S. — is likely to further discourage reciprocal deals.
The most powerful passports for 2025
- Singapore (193 destinations)
- Japan, South Korea (190)
- Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain (189)
- Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden (188)
- Greece, New Zealand, Switzerland (187)
- United Kingdom (186)
- Australia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Malta, Poland (185)
- Canada, Estonia, United Arab Emirates (184)
- Croatia, Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia (183)
- Iceland, Lithuania, United States (182)
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