Back in the days of the cavemen, there were no borders. People simply roamed across the continents and then got into spear-fights when they encountered a rival tribe. These days things aren’t quite so simple.
In the 21st century, your passport acts as your ticket to the rest of the world. Over millennia, all those aforementioned tribes slowly formed nations, each of which has its own rules about who can and can’t come into its country to avoid those spear-fights of yore.
The strength of a passport is generally determined by how many countries it grants its holder access to – bonus points if you can get in visa-free. The Henley Passport Index, released quarterly, is one of the biggest and most reliable passport rankings out there, tracking 199 passports across 227 destinations, and Henley’s first breakdown of 2025 is here.
The UK generally ends up fairly high in the index, and this year is no different. We came in fifth overall, with Brits granted access to a total of 190 locations without a visa. Although this is a pretty good place to be, we have fallen one spot from fourth in mid-2024, but through no fault of our own.
We haven’t gained or lost entry to any nations, but Japan, now in second, did gain one, which pushed everyone else down. We are currently being beaten by Finland, France, Germany, Italy, South Korea, and Spain; all in joint third, and Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden in joint fourth.
Once again, Singapore topped the charts, with its residents being granted passage visa-free into 195 countries. Similarly, Afghanistan remains in last place. Afghani passport holders can only get into 26 nations without a visa – so there’s a pretty big discrepancy between first and last.
You can have a look at the entire list on the Henley website here if you’re interested to see who else we beat, or to choose which nationality to marry into to maximise your visa-free adventures.
Where to next?
Want to put that passport to good use but can’t decide where to go? Here are our favourite underrated travel destinations, our top recommended cities for foodies in the UK, and some of our top picks for things to do in Britain this year.
Did you see that Eurostar ticket prices could be more affordable from April?
Plus: Birmingham is officially one of Time Out’s best places to visit in Europe in 2025
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