Vietnam passport ranks low in global ranking

The global offshore consulting firm ranked 199 economies in terms of passport strength based on five categories: visa-free travel, international taxation laws, global perception, dual citizenship and personal freedom.

Vietnam’s low ranking in the Nomad Passport Index 2020 reflects the fact that Vietnamese passport holders can only travel visa free to 54 countries and territories, slightly more than Laos in Southeast Asia with 50, the Hong Kong-based firm said.

Vietnam also scored poorly in terms of global perception and level of personal freedom of citizens, travelers and expats, the report said.

In Southeast Asia, Singapore has the most powerful passport with visa free access to 190 destinations and a high level of personal freedom, followed by Malaysia with 178 countries.

Nine of the ten top passports were from Europe, with Singapore being the only non-European country to break into the top ten.

The Swedish passport was the most powerful with visa-free access to 186 countries and territories, high levels of personal freedom and an excellent global reputation. The worst passport was from Afghanistan, with visa free access to just 26 destinations.

With the Donald Trump administration pursuing a hostile immigration policy, the U.S. lost its throne as the most powerful passport in the world, slipping down to 40th rank.

According to Mastercard, Vietnam has the second fastest growing outbound market in the Asia Pacific region after Myanmar, with projected annual growth of 9.5 percent between 2016 and 2021. The firm forecast some 7.5 million Vietnamese travelers would venture outside the country in 2021.