Our country has improved its position in the world ranking. Now Belarusian passport holders can visit 77 countries around the world without a visa.
Henley & Partners published a world passport rating on January 8th. Belarus occupies 66th place in it. Citizens of our country have the opportunity to visit 77 countries around the world without visas. This is the worst result compared to all the neighbors.
Out of the neighboring countries, the best rating was given to citizens of Lithuania and Latvia, who do not need a visa to visit 180 countries (11th place in the world), as well as Poland – 174 countries and 15th place, respectively. Ukraine is located on the 41st place (128 countries), Russia — on the 48th place (119 countries).
The best positions in the rating were taken by Belarus in 2007-2008, when it was in 63rd place. The worst position was in 2015 — 78th place. Last year, the Belarusian passport occupied the 68th position, and thus in the updated rating, it improved its position by two places.
Where can a Belarusian citizen go without a visa?
In Europe, we can go without a visa to Albania, Moldova, Russia, Serbia, Ukraine and Montenegro.
In Asia, the doors are open for us in Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Georgia, Jordan, Israel, Indonesia, Nepal, Palestine, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, etc. The full list can be viewed at the link. True, in some countries you may be asked to get a visa at the airport or at the border.
World’s best and worst passports
Japan has the best position in the passport rating — its citizens can visit 190 countries without a visa. The second position is shared by Singapore and South Korea — 189 directions, the third — by France and Germany (188 countries).
The top 5 worst passports include passports for citizens of Pakistan (33 countries), Somalia and Syria (32 each), Afghanistan and Iraq (30 each).
The Henley & Partners Passport Index is an international ranking of countries in terms of the freedom of movement they give their citizens. The index has been published since 2006.
In 2018 Belarus became closer to other countries of the world. Its visa-free regime was extended twice for those who come to Belarus through the Minsk airport. Also last year, a visa-free agreement between Belarus and China and Hong Kong came into force. In addition, Belarusians no longer need to travel to other countries to get a visa to the United States.
