Japan has overtaken Singapore to claim the world's most powerful passport spot on the 2018 Henley Passport Index, having gained visa-free access to Myanmar earlier this month.

The Henley Passport Index is the original ranking of all the world's passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa.

The passport tussle that Japan won

Japan now enjoys visa-free/visa-on-arrival access to 190 destinations, compared to Singapore's total of 189, as per Henley.

Japan and Singapore have been neck and neck on the index since they both climbed to first place in February -- following a visa-exemption from Uzbekistan -- and pushed Germany down to second place for the first time since 2014.

Fall in passport rankings: US, UK, Russia, China

The US and the UK, both with 186 destinations, have also slid down one spot -- from 4th to 5th place -- with neither having gained access to any new jurisdictions since the start of 2018, and both having stagnant outbound visa activity.

Russia received a boost in September when Taiwan announced a visa-waiver for Russian nationals (valid until July 2019), but the country has nonetheless fallen from 46th to 47th place compared to Q3, because of movements higher up in the ranking.

The same is true of China: Chinese nationals obtained access to two new jurisdictions (St. Lucia and Myanmar), but the Chinese passport fell two places this quarter, to 71st overall.

This is still an impressive 14-place improvement over the position that China held at the start of 2017.

Rise in passport rankings: France, South Korea, UAE

France moved up from 4th to 3rd place last Friday when it gained visa-free access to Uzbekistan, while South Korea moved from 4th to 3rd place on October 1 when it gained visa-free access to Myanmar.

What has been most remarkable in recent years is the UAE's stunning ascent on the Henley Passport Index, from 62nd place in 2006 to 21st place worldwide currently.

The UAE now holds the number 1 passport in the Middle East region.

Consistent bottom spot: Iraq, Afghanistan

Iraq and Afghanistan continue to hold the bottom (106th) spot of the Henley Passport Index, with only 30 destinations accessible to their citizens.

Future star: Kosovo

Looking ahead, the most dramatic climb on the Henley Passport Index might come from Kosovo, which officially met all the criteria for visa-liberalization with the EU in July and is now in discussions with the European Council.

Citizenship-by-investment countries continuously rank up

Moldova's new biometric passport

Countries with citizenship-by-investment (CBI) programs in place all fall within the top 50 of the Henley Passport Index and are continually rising up the ranking.

Newcomer Moldova, for example, which launched its CBI program in the second half of this year, has climbed 20 places since 2008.

Every CBI program country has improved its visa-free/visa-on-arrival score since the start of the year.

"CBI programs offer access to some of the world's strongest and most promising passports," said Christian Kalin, Group Chairman of Henley & Partners.

"...The merit of these passports is a reflection of the underlying stability and attractiveness of the countries themselves," he added.

10 countries with the most powerful passports

1. Japan

Access to 190 nations

2. Singapore

Access to 189 nations

3. Germany, France, South Korea

Access to 188 nations

4. Denmark, Finland, Italy, Sweden, Spain

Access to 187 nations

5. Norway, United Kingdom, Austria, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, United States

Access to 186 nations

6. Belgium, Switzerland, Ireland, Canada

Access to 185 nations

7. Australia, Greece, Malta

Access to 183 nations

8. New Zealand, Czech Republic

Access to 182 nations

9. Iceland

Access to 181 nations

10. Hungary, Slovenia, Malaysia

Access to 180 nations

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