In the second quarter of 2021, despite the coronavirus pandemic, Russia climbed two lines in the World Passport Index rating of the Swiss consulting company Henley & Partners and took 48th place. This is evidenced by the data published on the official website of the company.
The rating is based on the freedom of movement index, which indicates how many other countries a citizen of a certain state can visit without a visa or in a simplified procedure for obtaining it.
It is noted that the Russian Federation has acquired visa-free access to Iraq and Oman, so now Russians can travel without a visa to 118 destinations.
The Japanese passport still ranks first in the index: the borders of 193 countries of the world are open to the Japanese, despite the current ban on the entry of foreign citizens into the territory of the state. In second place is the Singapore passport, which opens up the possibility of visa-free travel to 192 countries, and Germany and South Korea are in third place (in 191 countries).
In addition, in the second quarter of this year, China immediately climbed 22 positions – from 90th place with the ability to travel to 40 countries of the world to 68th line and access to 77 countries.
In turn, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has moved from 65th to 15th place in the ranking. So, with a UAE passport, you can travel to 174 destinations without a visa or with a visa upon arrival.
In early January, it was reported that the Russian Federation rose one line in the ranking and took 50th place with unhindered visits to 116 countries.
In July last year, Henley & Partners noted that the fact of the widespread closure of borders in connection with the coronavirus pandemic did not affect the ranking figures, since the current restrictions are not related to formal agreements on visa-free travel between countries.