Taiwan passport moves up to 33rd

Taiwan’s standing improved slightly from 35th last year, while Singapore rose from second to first. China was 59th, the Henley & Partners index showed

A Taiwan passport enables its holder to enter 141 destinations visa-free, ranking 33rd among 199 countries and regions on this year’s Henley Passport Index.

Taiwan shared the same ranking as Peru, a slight improvement from 35th place last year, the index released yesterday by citizenship consultancy firm Henley & Partners showed.

Since the company started releasing annual rankings 19 years ago, Taiwan has climbed from 55th to 33rd place.

Taiwan’s ranking dropped to its lowest point, at 69th, in 2010, and reached its highest position, 24th, in 2014.

However, Taiwan’s position has stayed relatively steady at around 30th place since 2015, the report said.

Singapore rose from second to first place in this year’s rankings, with visa-free access to 195 destinations. The city-state has ranked first or second annually since 2018.

Following Singapore were

France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Spain, tied in second place with visa-free access to 192 destinations each.

Austria, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, South Korea and Sweden tied at third place, with 191 countries or regions not requiring holders to apply for visas in advance.

Next up were Belgium, Denmark, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland and the UK, tied in fourth place with visa-free access to 190 destinations.

Placing fifth were Australia and Portugal, whose passport holders can travel to 189 destinations visa-free.

Hong Kong ranked 18th with visa-exemptions to 170 destinations, while China placed 59th with 85 countries and regions.

The Henley Passport Index rankings are calculated based on how many countries or areas a passport allows its holder to enter with no visa required.

The index compares 199 passports’ access to 227 travel destinations based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association, “the largest, most accurate travel information database,” according to Henley & Partners.

Based in London, Henley & Partners is “the global leader in residence and citizenship by investment,” a statement on its official Web site says.