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Earlier this year, a video from a popular travel content creator complaining about India's weak passport gained massive traction on social media.

He mentioned although neighbouring countries such as Bhutan and Sri Lanka offered easier access to travelers from India, obtaining visas for visiting most Western and European countries continued to be difficult.

This dissatisfaction with India's poor passport strength found confirmation in recent global passport ranking, ranking India at position eighty-five among nearly two hundred nations, a decline of five positions than last year.

Officials in India has not commented regarding these findings so far.

Nations including Ghana, Rwanda and Azerbaijan despite smaller economic size than India – a nation that is the world's fifth biggest economy – are ranked higher in the ranking at the 78th, 74th and 72nd spots, in that order.

Actually, India's rank over the last ten years has remained in the 80s, even dipping to the 90th spot in 2021. Such standings are dismal compared to Asian nations such as Singapore, Japan and South Korea, which have consistently held top positions.

What Passport Strength Indicates

The power of a passport indicates a nation's soft power and international standing. This leads to enhanced travel freedom for its citizens, improving commercial and learning opportunities. Limited passport power means more paperwork, higher visa costs, reduced travel benefits and extended processing periods for travel.

However, even with the decline in the rank, the count of nations providing visa-free travel to Indians has grown over the last ten years.

As an instance, eight years ago – the year the current administration's ruling party assumed office – fifty-two nations provided visa-free travel to Indians and its passport ranked 76th in the ranking.

A year later, it fell to the 85th position, then rose to 80th over the past two years, declining once more to the 85th position currently. At the same time, countries allowing visa-free travel for Indians increased from 52 in 2015 to sixty last year and sixty-two this year.

The Competitive Global Mobility Landscape

The number of visa-free destinations this year (fifty-seven) exceeds the number eight years ago (52), yet the country's position during both periods remains at eighty-fifth. So, why is that?

Analysts note that a primary factor involves growing competition in international travel – indicating that countries are forming more travel partnerships to benefit their citizens and their economies. According to recent analysis, the global average number of destinations people can visit visa-free has almost doubled from 58 in 2006 to one hundred nine currently.

For example, China has increased the number of visa-free destinations available to its citizens from fifty to eighty-two over the last ten years. Consequently, its position on the index has enhanced from ninety-fourth to sixtieth in that same duration.

In comparison, India – which was ranked 77th on the index in July – dropped to the 85th position this autumn following the loss of two nations.

Additional Factors Affecting Passport Strength

A former Indian ambassador notes multiple elements influencing the strength of a country's passport, like its economic and political stability plus its receptiveness to welcoming citizens from other countries.

For example, the US passport has fallen of the top 10 currently holding the 12th position – a historic low – due to its increasingly insular stance in world politics.

The former ambassador recalls how in the 1970s, Indian citizens had visa-free access to numerous European and Western nations, but that changed after the Khalistan movement during the eighties. Later political disturbances have further chipped away at India's image as a stable, democratic country.

"Numerous nations are also becoming more cautious of immigrants," the diplomat added. "India has a large quantity of citizens emigrating to other countries or overstaying their visas and that interferes with the country's reputation."

Factors such as how secure a country's passport is and its immigration procedures also play a role to obtaining visa-free access to foreign nations.

Security and Technological Improvements

India's passport remains vulnerable to security risks. Last year, authorities detained 203 people for suspected visa and passport fraud. The country also has complex immigration processes and a slow pace for visa approvals.

The former ambassador indicated that technological advances, like India's recently-launched digital passport or e-passport, can improve security and streamline immigration. The e-passport contains a small chip holding biometric information, increasing difficulty to forge or tamper with the document.

But, more diplomatic outreach and travel agreements remain key to boosting the global mobility of Indians and, by extension, India's passport ranking.