UAE passport now world's 3rd most powerful

Dubai - UAE passport holders can enter 113 countries visa-free, while 50 countries will welcome them with a visa on arrival.

By Web Report

Published: Fri 9 Nov 2018, 3:30 PM

The UAE passport on Thursday jumped another spot to become the third most powerful passport in the world.

It was only late last month that the passport had climbed to the fourth spot.

The UAE travel document now has a visa-free score of 163. Of these, UAE passport holders can enter 113 countries visa-free, while 50 countries will welcome them with a visa on arrival. Emiratis still need visas to enter 35 countries on the globe.

#UAE's passport ranks 3rd globally in the Global Passport Power Rank by Passport Index. #UAE passport holders can travel to 163 countries visa-free. pic.twitter.com/3TEiCmQsDi
- Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) November 8, 2018

According to ranking by Passport Index, the UAE passport now shares its berth with passports from Belgium, Austria, Japan, Greece, Portugal, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Ireland and Canada.

On top of the list with a visa-free score of 165 are Singapore and Germany, while US, South Korea, France, Denmark and Sweden are among the 11 countries that share the second spot with a score of 164.

"The United Arab Emirates' positive diplomacy, focus and determination helped boost its passport power," Passport Index said in its blog titled "UAE to Become The World's Most Powerful Passport?".

"More and more countries are placing an importance on the power of their passports, and how freely their citizens can travel across the globe," said Armand Arton, president of Arton Capital, the inventors of Passport Index.

"The success of UAE's initiative has become a testament to other nations, that any vision can manifest with the power of positive diplomacy," added Arton.