TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The British consultancy firm Henley and Partners has listed Taiwan’s passport as the 34th strongest in the world.
In the latest Henley Passport Index, Singapore came in first place with a score of 193. This means passport holders can enter 193 countries without a visa or with a visa on arrival.
Japan and South Korea tied for second at 190, while there was a seven-way tie for third place among Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, and Spain at 189. For fourth place, there was a seven-way tie of 188 for Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.
Rising one spot from its average ranking last year to 34th with a score of 139, Taiwan maintained a large lead over its neighbors, China and the Philippines, which stayed at 60th and 75th place, respectively. According to the index, Taiwan retained its rank in East Asia and Southeast Asia as the eighth most powerful passport, behind Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Brunei, and Macau.
Taiwanese passport holders can visit 139 countries, while Chinese passport holders can visit 83 countries. Philippine passport holders can only visit 65 countries without prior visa approval.
Taiwan ranked 55th when the list was first announced in 2006, with its lowest ranking being 69th in 2010 and highest 24th in 2014. Since 2015, its ranking has consistently been in the 30s.
The weakest passport in the world is Afghanistan at 102nd. This is followed by Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Pakistan, Somalia, Nepal, Palestinian Territories, Libya, and Bangladesh.
Henley and Partners ranks 199 passports in terms of the number of countries their holders can enter without prior visa approval among 227 travel destinations, based on data provided by the Air Transport Association.
On Thursday, Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Facebook the improved ranking demonstrates that more countries are welcoming Taiwanese tourists, such as Thailand, which granted visa-free access to Taiwanese passports last year. In addition, Lin said the US, South Korea, Australia, Italy, Germany, Singapore, and Malaysia offer automated customs clearance services for Taiwan passports.
