The Spanish passport has risen to the top of the list of 199 international passports.
This is in line with the most recent VisaGuide update – World Passport Index.
SchengenVisaInfo.com reports that the Spanish passport is expected to be particularly prominent among travel documents for ardent adventurers and tourists.
The passport holders would be able to enter 43 countries without a passport and that Spanish nationals can enter 106 more countries without a visa.
They will also gain access to 30 countries via visa on arrival, 18 more countries through online visa access, and 11 countries through entry with a travel authorization.
Singapore comes in second on the list, followed closely by Germany in third place, Italy in fourth place, and France completing the top five.
Regarding the most recent passport rating, a Global Travel Trends Analyst, Dion Pllana, points out that European passports—particularly those of EU and Schengen Area Member States—dominate the ranking.
The following are the non-EU/Schengen countries that are listed in the index’s top 40 positions:
Singapore – 2nd
Japan – 15th
South Korea – 27th
United Kingdom – 28th
New Zealand – 29th
Australia – 34th
Canada – 38th
United Arab Emirates – 39th
United States – 40th
In evaluating the Spanish passport, various variables were taken into account, including the number of countries that let admission without a visa. This was done using an index that assigns different values to different travel kinds, including visa, e-visa, visa-on-arrival, passport-free, and visa-free.
Monthly updates are made to the index to reflect the most recent changes to travel and visa regulations worldwide.
The Italian passport was the strongest in Europe and the third strongest in the world earlier in February of this year, behind only the passports from Singapore and Japan.
Italian citizens were granted passport-free travel to 45 countries, visa-free entry to 100 countries globally, online travel authorization to 11 countries, e-visa access to 8 countries, and visa-on-arrival benefits to 35 countries throughout that time. Traditional visas were required for 28 countries.
The Italian passport is currently the fourth most popular passport in the world, allowing entrance into 107 countries without the need for a visa, ten countries that give eTA, 29 countries that permit visas on arrival, 19 countries that offer e-visas, and 18 countries that require a traditional visa. Italian people do not need a passport to enter 44 countries.
The Times had earlier revealed that 600,000 people were to be hired by Spain for specific temporary positions in the hospital industry. These jobs, however, do not provide stable employment with the possibility of obtaining citizenship or permanent residency.