London Defender

The Daily Mirror of the Great Britain

Germany’s global status dealt brutal blow as new country claims most powerful passport

The Global Citizen Solution’s Global Passport Index suggests Germany has been knocked off the top spot by United Arab Emirates (UEA), which in previous years did not even appear in the top 10.

Those with a UEA passport can enter a total of 105 countries without a visa, 55 with a visa on arrival and require a visa in 38 countries before entry.

Countries requiring a visa include Ghana, North Korea and the US.

Visa on arrival means that, upon arriving in a country, tourists need to queue up to apply and pay for a visa.

German tourists are unable to enter as many countries ‘restriction free’.

They require a visa in a total of 46 countries, a visa on arrival in 39 and can enter 152 countries visa-free.

Germany, Finland and Italy all placed second in this year’s rankings with a total of 151 countries without a visa or with a visa on arrival.

German passport holders currently have to apply for a visa in advance in 46 countries, including Afghanistan, China, North Korea and Russia.

A total of 199 countries and territories are compared to determine which passport is the “most powerful” and has the most advantages and disadvantages when travelling.

However, the pandemic has also impacted results as many countries implement travel bans in a bid to curb the spread of the virus.

Countries including Japan and Malaysia are still restricting tourists from entering.

At the bottom of the global rankings is Iraq and Afghanistan where passport holders are only permitted to travel to 34 countries visa-free.

The UK ranked joint sixth with Greece, Slovakia, Ireland and the US.

Those with a UK passport can travel to 149 countries without requiring a visa, with 49 countries requiring a visa.

They include China, India and Russia.