Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 20) — Rising four spots in this year’s Henley Passport Index, the Philippines is seen to continue its “upwards” trend in the coming years.
According to Henley & Partners managing director Scott Moore, the Philippines’ steady economic growth is one factor why it rose from last year’s 78th spot to 74th place this year.
\”The Philippines is generally turning upwards because of the growing economy,\” Moore told CNN Philippines’ The Final Word on Wednesday.
He added that the Philippines has maintained the trend for the 18 years the agency has published the index.
The Henley Passport Index is based on the data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and ranks 199 passports worldwide by measuring global travel freedom in terms of the visa-free and visa-on-demand access to citizens worldwide.
This year, Singapore has snatched the No.1 position in the index from Japan.
Moore noted that several countries have the same rank this year, which may have affected the rise in the Philippines’ ranking.
\”The Philippines has been pretty steady in terms of score in giving access to 67 countries with applying for a visa,\” he said.
A total of 34 countries share rankings in the index’s top 10 positions this year. Most are indicated to have the same number of destinations that offer visa-free access to international travelers.
Here are the index’s top 10 best passports to hold in 2023:
1. Singapore (192 destinations)
2. Germany, Italy, Spain (190 destinations)
3. Austria, Finland, France, Japan, Luxembourg, South Korea, Sweden (189 destinations)
4. Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands, UK (188 destinations)
5. Belgium, Czech Republic, Malta, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland (187 destinations)
6. Australia, Hungary, Poland (186 destinations)
7. Canada, Greece (185 destinations)
8. Lithuania, United States (184 destinations)
9. Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia (183 destinations)
