passport holders now have unrestricted access to 95 destinations around the world , which is close to their prepandemic passport score of 105 .
Chris Dix of VFS Global , a visa processing provider , says visa application volumes between January and May this year grew by more than 100 % compared to the same period last year .
“ With the opening of international borders , easing of travel restrictions , and the resumption of regular international flights , the industry is currently witnessing peak ‘ revenge travel ’. For example , in India , visa applications are averaging more than 20,000 per day as we head into the July – August holiday season . These numbers include travellers visiting Canada , Europe , and the UK , along with other popular destinations . We are also expecting an extended summer travel season this year with planned international trips stretching right through to September .”
Russian passport holders are more cut off from the rest of the world than ever before , as sanctions , travel bans , and airspace closures limit Russian citizens from accessing all but a few destinations in Asia and the Middle East . The Russian passport currently sits at 50th place on the index , with a visa-free or visa-free on arrival score of 119 . However , due to airspace closures in EU member nations , Australia , Canada , Japan , New Zealand , South Korea , the US , and the UK , Russian citizens are effectively barred from travelling throughout most of the developed world , with the marked exceptions of Istanbul and Dubai , which have become focal points .
The Ukrainian passport is currently ranked in 35th place on the index , with holders able to access 144 destinations around the world without needing a visa in advance . In contrast to the stringent restrictions placed on Russian passport holders , Ukrainians displaced by the invasion have been granted the right to live and work in the EU for up to three years under an emergency plan in response to what has become Europe ’ s biggest refugee crisis this century . After the EU ’ s recent , groundbreaking announcement awarding Ukraine candidate status , the first step towards EU membership , the travel freedom for Ukrainian passport holders is likely to increase further in the coming years .
Commenting in the Henley Global Mobility Report 2022 Q3 , Prof . Dr . Khalid Koser OBE , Member of the Governing Board of the Andan Foundation , says at least five million Ukrainians have left their country , and a further seven million or so are displaced internally .
“ In a global — not just European — context , these are very significant numbers , making Ukrainians one of the largest refugee populations in the world , along with Syrians , Venezuelans , and Afghans .”
Unique research conducted by Henley & Partners comparing a country ’ s visa-free access with its Global Peace Index score shows a strong correlation between a nation ’ s passport power and its peacefulness . All of the nation ’ s sitting in the top ten of the Henley Passport Index can also be found in the top ten of the Global Peace Index . Likewise , for the bottom ranking nations .
Commenting on the results in the Henley Global Mobility Report 2022 Q3 , Stephen Klimczuk-Massion , Fellow at Oxford University ' s Saïd Business School and Member of the Advisory Committee of the Andan Foundation , says “ it ’ s an understatement to say that we are living through a particularly turbulent time worldwide , with the pandemic still casting a long shadow and newer developments such as war , inflation , political instability and incidents of violence increasingly dominating the headlines . In this context , a passport is more than ever a calling card , which , depending on which passport you carry and where you are going , will have an impact on the kind of welcome you will receive , where you can go and how safe you will be when you get there . Now more than ever , it ' s a mistake to think of a passport as merely a travel document that allows you to get from A to B . The relative strength or weakness of a particular national passport directly affects the quality of life for the passport holder and may even be a matter of life and death in some circumstances ."
Prof . Dr . Yossi Harpaz , Assistant Professor of Sociology at Tel-Aviv University , notes that among the estimated 300,000 emigrants who have left Russia since late February are many of the country ’ s highly educated and well-heeled citizens .
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