The world’s 3 best passports for travel aren’t from the US or Europe

Traveling comes with its share of challenges, not least applying for visas. And visa regimes can determine the trajectory of your life: where you’re allowed to travel, study, work and live. Your global mobility essentially comes down to that little booklet you hold.

Here are the passports that enjoy the greatest travel freedom and the lowest number of visa requirements around the world in 2019, according to rankings from two global citizenship and residence advisory firms: Arton Capital’s Global Passport Power Rank 2019 and Henley & Partners’ 2019 Henley Passport Index.

Singapore, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates

Singapore and Japan tie for first place on the Henley Passport Index, while the United Arab Emirates (UAE) sits atop the Arton Capital Passport Index ranking.

Henley gives Singapore and Japan scores of 189. The figure represents the number of countries and destinations those passports can access without having to apply for a visa.

Arton Capital’s Passport Index gives UAE citizens a mobility score of 175, the highest on its list. The sites’ lists differ due to differences in methodology. Henley’s index includes more destinations beyond those officially recognized by the UN — 227 in total — but scores passports according to where they can travel entirely visa-free. Arton Capital’s index, meanwhile, awards passport scores based on both visa-free and visa-on-arrival travel ability, and examines passport access to 199 destinations: 193 United Nations member countries and six officially recognized territories.

The world’s least mobile passports

1. Afghanistan

2. Iraq

3. Syria

4. Pakistan

5. Somalia