Bangladesh slips two more spots on powerful passport list

Bangladesh has once again fallen further in the ranking of the world's most powerful passports. In the Henley Passport Index published in July 2026, Bangladesh's position has dropped to 97th place. At the beginning of the year, Bangladesh's passport was ranked 95th on the index.

The London-based international consultancy firm Henley & Partners published the latest index on its website on Tuesday, July 21.

The index is based on an analysis of passports from 199 countries and 227 potential travel destinations. The fundamental criterion of the index is how many countries a nation's citizens can enter without a prior visa or with a visa-on-arrival facility.

According to the index, Bangladeshi passport holders can currently travel to 35 countries worldwide without a prior visa or with a visa-on-arrival facility. In the January 2026 and 2025 indices, this number was 37. In other words, Bangladesh has lost two visa-free or easy-visa destinations over a six-month period.

However, despite the decrease in visa-free countries, Bangladesh's passport position has improved by three places compared to July 2025. In July 2025, Bangladesh's position was 100th.

According to the new index, Bangladesh shares the 97th position with North Korea. In the July 2025 index, North Korea's position was 99th.

Bangladeshi passport holders can enjoy visa-free and visa-on-arrival facilities in these 35 countries

According to the Henley & Partners index, Bangladeshi passport holders currently enjoy complete visa-free access to 17 countries and territories.

These countries and territories are: Rwanda, Bahamas, Barbados, Zambia, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Cook Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Kiribati, Micronesia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.

Additionally, visa-on-arrival facilities are available in another 14 countries: Bhutan, Burundi, Maldives, Nepal, Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Comoros Islands, Djibouti, Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar, Sierra Leone, Niue, Samoa and Tuvalu.

Furthermore, Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) facilities are available in Sri Lanka, Kenya and St Kitts and Nevis – these three countries.

Positions of other countries in the July 2026 index
Singapore has retained the title of the world's most powerful passport, with its citizens able to travel to 192 countries visa-free.

Japan, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates are in second place, with 188 visa-free or easy-access destinations. Sweden is in third place, with 187 destinations. Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain are in fourth place, with 186 destinations.

Austria, Greece, Malta, Portugal and Switzerland are in fifth place, with 185 destinations. Hungary, Poland and the UK are in sixth place. Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Slovakia and Slovenia are in seventh place. Croatia and Estonia are in eighth. Liechtenstein and Lithuania are in ninth, and Iceland and the US are in tenth.

Brazil and Argentina share 16th place, with 169 visa-free destinations.

Ukraine is ranked 31st with 142 destinations, and Russia is 47th with 114 destinations. Israel is 18th with 166 destinations.

Iran and Palestine jointly hold 96th place with 37 visa-free destinations. Saudi Arabia is ranked 54th. China is jointly 60th with Kosovo, and Haiti and Vietnam are in 87th place.

Among South Asian countries, the Maldives has the most powerful passport, ranked 52nd with 93 visa-free or easy-access destinations. India is ranked 81st with 55 destinations. Bhutan is 88th, Myanmar 91st, and Sri Lanka 94th.

Nepal is placed just below Bangladesh at 98th, with 34 easy-access destinations. Pakistan is ranked 101st with 29 destinations. Syria is 103rd, Iraq 102nd, and Afghanistan is at the bottom in 104th, with only 22 visa-free destinations.