Accordingly, Australian passports are down one place compared to last year and tied with Canada, Czech Republic, Latvia, New Zealand, Slovakia and Slovenia. Citizens of these countries are visa-exempt to 182 destinations out of a total of 227 countries and territories in the world.
Meanwhile, the Malaysian passport has made a remarkable upgrade when it rose from 12th place last year to 6th place this year - the highest level in the 20-year history of the ranking. Malaysian passport holders can visa-free entry to 183 destinations.
In Southeast Asia, Malaysia is currently the country with the second most powerful passport, only after Singapore - a country that continues to hold the No. 1 position in the world with visa-free access to 193 destinations.
Ranked second globally is the group of countries including Japan, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates.
Vietnam's passport is currently ranked 84th in the world, up 2 places compared to January 2026 and up 6-7 places compared to 2025, marking the highest level in the past 5 years. Vietnamese citizens can now enter 48 destinations without a visa or only need a border gate/e-visa visa.
Notably, despite the downward ranking, Australian passports are still among the most expensive in the world. According to the financial comparison site Compare the Market (UK), citizens of this country have to spend about 422 Australian dollars (equivalent to 302 USD) to be granted a passport, after the fee was adjusted to increase from January 2026.
Henley Passport Index is a ranking tracking the level of freedom of travel for global citizens, based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). This index evaluates 199 passports based on the number of destinations that holders can enter without a prior visa. The index is updated regularly to reflect changes in visa policies around the world.
