Where the Canadian passport ranks among the most powerful in the world
The Canadian passport continues to be one of the most powerful in the world, according to a prestigious ranking.
According to the latest Henley Passport Index ranking, Canada remains among the top 10 most useful passports to own.
“With historical data spanning 20 years, the Henley Passport Index is the only one of its kind based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Authority (IATA),” reads the site.
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The index, which is updated monthly, ranks passports based on the number of countries that a passport holder can travel to without a visa. It compares the visa-free access of 199 different passports to 227 travel destinations.
The Canadian passport takes the eighth spot in November, boasting access to 183 destinations visa-free.
It went up one spot from ninth place in October, going back to its initial ranking in July. The Canadian passport ties for eighth place with Latvia.
Canada beat out the American passport once again this month. The U.S. passport takes 11th place with visa-free access to 180 destinations. It jumped one spot from 12th place in October.
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According to Henley & Partners, this marked a “historic low” for the U.S.
“For the first time since the Henley Passport Index was created 20 years ago, the United States is no longer ranked amongst the world’s top 10 most powerful passports,” reads the report.
“Once unrivalled at number one in 2014, the American passport has now slumped to 12th place, tied with Malaysia, with visa-free access to only 180 of 227 destinations worldwide.”
It experienced its most significant drop this year, down from 7th place overall in 2024.
While the Canadian passport is still in the top 10, it has also experienced a huge drop since 2014, when historical rankings placed it in the second spot.
The top three spots now belong to Singapore (visa-free access to 193 countries), South Korea (visa-free access to 190 countries), and Japan (visa-free access to 189 countries).
One expert attributes the U.S. passport’s sharp drop from the number one spot to the 12th place in just a decade to political factors.
“Even before a second Trump presidency, U.S. policy had turned inward,” explained Annie Pforzheimer, senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. “That isolationist mindset is now being reflected in America’s loss of passport power.”
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, Liberia, Libya, Mali, Muritania, Myanmar, Nauru, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Russian Federation, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Venezuela, Vietnam, and Yemen.
With files from Irish Mae Silvestre