In Southeast Asia, apart from Singapore in the number 1 position, the remaining countries are as follows: Vietnam ranked 91st with 51 visa-free destinations; Malaysia (respectively 12 – 183); Brunei (20 – 166); Thailand (61 – 82); Indonesia (66 – 76); Philippines (75 – 67); Cambodia (89 – 53); Laos (93 – 49)… In addition, China ranked 60th.
Returning to the top 10, Japan ranks second in the rankings, with access to 193 destinations, thanks to regaining visa-free access to China for the first time since the Covid-19 lockdown.
EU member states France, Germany, Italy and Spain are in third place, along with Finland and South Korea, with visa-free access to 192 destinations.
The fourth place in the ranking is a testament to the strength of the borderless Schengen area, which guarantees freedom of movement for more than 425 million EU citizens as Austrians, Danes, Irish, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norwegians and Swedes enjoy visa-free access to 191 destinations.
Ranking in fifth place are five countries, including Belgium, New Zealand, Portugal, Switzerland and the UK, all of which offer visa-free access to 190 destinations.
The rest of the top 10 is dominated by European countries, with a few exceptions. Australia and Greece are tied at number 6, while Malta, Poland and Canada are in seventh place.
8th place is shared by the Czech Republic and Hungary; the US and Estonia are in 9th place; 10th place is held by Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia and the United Arab Emirates.
This is the 20th year of the index, created by London-based global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners, which tracks global freedoms in 227 countries and territories around the world, using proprietary data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
At the other end of the rankings, in 106th place, Afghanistan remains at the bottom of the list, with visa-free access to just 26 destinations, two fewer than a year ago. Syria is in 105th place (with 27 destinations) and Iraq is in 104th place (with 31 destinations).
Source: Vietnam Insider