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Japan passport tops power league

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LONDON, 24 May 2018: Japan has consolidated its position as the most powerful passport at the top of the Henley Passport Index.

A Japanese passport offers citizens visa-free, or visa-on-arrival access, to a record 189 destinations.

Following closely behind Japan are Singapore and Germany in joint second place, with 188 destinations accessible either through visa-free entry, or visa-on-arrival.

The third place is shared by six countries: one Asian (South Korea) and the rest European (Finland, France, Italy, Spain, and Sweden).

While Schengen Area countries have traditionally topped the index as a result of their open access to Europe, developed Asian nations have been able to secure equally high scores in recent years thanks to their strong international trade and diplomatic relations.

With close to 40 visa-waiver agreements signed by governments since the start of the year, passport-holders around the world go into the summer season with greater collective access than ever before.

Boosting this trend, Russia — which is usually off-limits to nationals of most countries — announced last April that visas would be waived for all travellers holding tickets to the June to July FIFA World Cup. However, the country has fallen from 45th to 47th position on the Henley Passport Index.

The UAE, in 23rd place, remains the fastest overall climber on the index, ascending 38 places since 2008.

The country has secured more new visa-waivers for its citizens in 2018 than any other country and is quickly closing in on the lead that Israel, in 19th place, has historically held within the Middle East region.

The US and the UK are tied in 4th place, along with Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Portugal; the US has climbed one place, while the UK has remained stable.

Having gained access to the UAE, Oman, and Bosnia and Herzegovina this year, China has significantly strengthened its position on the ranking, climbing from 74th to 68th position — although the country’s relatively low score of 70 visa-free or visa-on-arrival destinations means that it still cannot compete with North Asian high-performers Japan and South Korea.

Leading global efforts towards improved travel freedom is the UAE, which has gained access to eight new countries in 2018 alone: China, Ireland, Burkina Faso, Uruguay, Guinea, Tonga, Benin, and Honduras. The country’s reciprocal agreement with China in particular has led to the Emirati hospitality and tourist industries reporting growth of up to 70% compared to 2017, as Chinese travellers begin taking advantage of their newfound access to the Middle East’s main hub.

The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs said recently that the country is actively strengthening its diplomatic efforts in a bid to have one of the top five passports in the world, as per the country’s Vision 2021.

Henley Passport Index, which is based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), has recently been updated through extensive research to include eight new travel destinations.

It surveys 199 different passports against 227 different travel destinations, including countries, territories, and micro-states.

China is gradually reciprocating the warm welcome it has received on the global stage. On 1 May, the government announced that citizens of 59 countries could travel to its popular Hainan province visa-free for a month — an unprecedented move for the traditionally closed-off nation.

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