A decade ago, the United States passport topped the Henley Passport Index, which measures how many countries citizens can visit without needing a visa. It was considered the most powerful travel document in the world.
In 2025, that dominance has faded. For the first time in twenty years, the U.S. passport has dropped out of the top ten, sliding from seventh place in 2024 to a tie for twelfth with Malaysia. Holders can now travel visa-free to 180 countries.
At the top of the list are three East Asian nations: Singapore, South Korea, and Japan, whose citizens can enter 193, 190, and 189 destinations respectively without a visa. Germany, Luxembourg, and Italy share the fourth position.
Analysts point to several factors behind the sharp decline, most notably policies tied to the Trump administration’s tighter immigration approach.
“The declining strength of the US passport over the past decade is more than just a reshuffle in rankings — it signals a fundamental shift in global mobility and soft power dynamics,” said Christian Kaelin, chairman of Henley & Partners. “Nations that embrace openness and cooperation are surging ahead, while those resting on past privilege are being left behind.”
The report also quoted Annie Pforzheimer, senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, who explained, “Even before a second Trump presidency, U.S. policy had turned inward. That isolationist mindset is now being reflected in America’s loss of passport power.”
She added that a range of “legal and questionably legal barriers to travel and temporary residence” have raised “red flags” for travelers, citing deportation policies as another contributing factor.
Henley & Partners, a firm specializing in citizenship and residency planning, attributed much of the decline to a lack of reciprocity. The report noted that while U.S. citizens can enter 180 countries visa-free, Washington grants that same privilege to only 46 nationalities.
In April, Brazil ended visa-free entry for citizens of the U.S., Canada, and Australia, explicitly citing the imbalance.
Another blow came from rising visa costs. The price of the U.S. Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) nearly doubled on September 30, 2025, jumping from $21 to $40.
Policy changes abroad also hurt America’s standing. China’s expanded visa waivers now cover many European countries but not the U.S., while new eVisa systems in Papua New Guinea, Myanmar, and Somalia reshuffled rankings in favor of other nations.
The report also documented an “unprecedented” rise in Americans seeking alternate citizenships or residency rights. By the end of the third quarter of 2025, applications for second passports from U.S. citizens had surged 67% compared to the total from 2024.
Henley identified one more factor that contributed to the U.S. slide — Vietnam’s decision to exclude American travelers from its new visa-free entry list.
The United Kingdom also suffered a setback, dropping to its lowest ranking ever, though it managed to remain in the top ten at number eight.
{Matzav.com}
