Where Canada ranks among most powerful passports in the world for 2026
Canada continues to provide one of the most advantageous passports in the world, according to a prestigious passport ranking.
Henley Passport Index has revealed its annual list, and Canada remains among the top 10 most powerful passports.
“With historical data spanning 20 years and regularly updated expert analysis on the latest shifts in passport power, the index is an invaluable resource for global citizens and the standard reference tool for government policy in this field,” reads the report.
The index ranks passports based on the number of countries a passport holder can travel to without a visa. It considers the visa-free access of 199 passports and 227 travel destinations, giving travellers information about their global access and mobility.
Canada placed high in the passport ranking in eighth spot, tying with Iceland and Lithuania. However, it seems the True North’s visa-free access has dipped from 183 destinations in November 2025 to 181 destinations in January 2026.
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Since October, Canada has gone up one spot in the passport ranking. The lowest the Canadian passport has ranked is ninth place in 2010, 2011, and 2020. The highest ranking it received was second in 2014.
Canadians currently have visa-free access to countries like Australia, El Salvador, France, Hong Kong, Japan, Lebanon, Mexico, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, the United States, and many more.
Canada continues to rank higher than the American passport, which took 10th place in the latest report. The country’s visa-free access dropped from 180 to 179 destinations since November. Despite this, it went up one spot from 11th to 10th place.
The most powerful passports in the world continue to be from countries in Asia. Singapore takes first place, with visa-free access to 192 countries, followed by Japan and South Korea tying for second place with visa-free access to 188 countries.
Denmark, Luxembourg, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland all take third place with visa-free access to 186 countries.
Canadians require a visa or e-visa if they want to travel to the following countries: Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Benin, Bhutan, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, China, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, India, Iran, Iraq, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Myanmar, Nauru, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Russian Federation, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Togo, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Venezuela, Vietnam, and Yemen.
Read the full report to see the full list of countries Canadians can travel to visa-free.