Vietnamese passport drops a notch on Henley index

By Minh Ngoc
Thu, July 7, 2022 | 12:21 pm GMT+7
A Vietnamese passport (green). Photo courtesy of the government's portal.

A Vietnamese passport (green). Photo courtesy of the government's portal.

The Vietnamese passport has fallen a notch to rank 90th on the list of the world’s most powerful passports, according to the latest report released by Henley Passport Index.

According to its Global Mobility Report 2022 Q2, Vietnam has dropped one place compared to the first quarter of this year, but jumped five places compared to the end of 2021.

Vietnam shares its rank with Guinea, Mali and Togo. The index covers 199 different passports and 227 different travel destinations.

Vietnamese citizens holding ordinary passports currently enjoy free access to 54 countries and territories.

Southeast Asian countries that score lower than Vietnam are Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, ranking 91, 94, and 98, respectively.

Japan and Singapore have held onto the position as the most powerful passports in the world in the second quarter, with their citizens able to visit 193 countries and territories without a visa.

In contrast, the world’s weakest passports are those from poor countries mired in conflict, including Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. Passport holders from these nations can only visit 26-29 countries and territories without visas.

Vietnam’s visa-free destinations include Cook Islands, Micronesia, Niue, Barbados, Haiti, Oman, Saint Vincent & the Grenadines, Dominica, Brunei, Cambodia, Singapore, Laos, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Chile, Ecuador and Panama.

The Henley Passport Index is an original, authoritative ranking of all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa. The index is based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) - the largest, most accurate travel information database - and enhanced by Henley & Partners’ research team.

The Vietnamese government on March 15 restored pre-pandemic immigration procedures for foreigners and overseas Vietnamese. March 15 is the day when Vietnam fully reopened its tourism market to international tourists.

Specifically, visa exemption is applied to citizens of Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland and Belarus. Citizens of these countries are allowed to enter Vietnam for a period of 15 days, regardless of passport type and entry purpose. This policy will be effective from March 15, 2022 to March 14, 2025, with extension to be considered.

Vietnam unilaterally exempted these countries from visas from the end of 2019 to the time the pandemic broke out over two years ago.

Before the Covid-19 outbreaks, it exempted visas unilaterally for 13 countries and bilaterally for 88 countries and territories. In 2020, the country put a halt to this mechanism as an anti-pandemic measure.

Vietnam also removed its health declaration requirement on April 27 and dropped Covid-19 testing requirement for people entering the country from May 15 onwards.

Traveling to Vietnam has become relatively easy, partly because of an efficient online visa system that allows travelers to submit their applications, according to the e-Visa.co.uk website.

“One of the main reasons that the Vietnamese passport scores so poorly is that Vietnam itself offers visa-free travel to few countries,” the website stated.

Comments (0)
  • Read More
Construction trio keen on building $1.5 bln expanded expressway in southern Vietnam

Construction trio keen on building $1.5 bln expanded expressway in southern Vietnam

Three construction majors in Vietnam are interested in building an expanded expressway connecting Ho Chi Minh City with the Mekong Delta provinces of Long An and Tien Giang for an estimated VND38.6 trillion ($1.52 billion).

Infrastructure - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 8:18 pm GMT+7

Singapore, Germany upgrade relations to strategic partnership

Singapore, Germany upgrade relations to strategic partnership

Singapore and Germany have decided to elevate their ties to a Strategic Partnership to promote closer cooperation in areas of mutual interest such as security, artificial intelligence (AI) and clean energy.

Southeast Asia - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 8:01 pm GMT+7

Thailand’s rice shipment up 20% in 10 months

Thailand’s rice shipment up 20% in 10 months

Thailand exported 8.37 million tons of rice in January-October, a year-on-year increase of 20%, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

Southeast Asia - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 8:00 pm GMT+7

Vietnam’s inconsistent legal framework poses problems for FDI sector: Deep C exec

Vietnam’s inconsistent legal framework poses problems for FDI sector: Deep C exec

Vietnam’s legal framework lacks consistency and the foreign direct investment (FDI) sector will soon face challenges related to the Law on Environmental Protection, says Bruno Jaspaert, CEO of Deep C Industrial Zones.

Economy - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 6:30 pm GMT+7

Vietnam shares sink on extended foreign selloffs

Vietnam shares sink on extended foreign selloffs

Vietnamese equities fell for a fourth consecutive day on Tuesday as foreign traders extended their selling spree.

Finance - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 5:10 pm GMT+7

Germany’s household product firm QuickPack to invest $32 mln in Vietnam

Germany’s household product firm QuickPack to invest $32 mln in Vietnam

Germany’s QuickPack, a specialist for household goods and hygiene products, will invest €30 million ($31.8 million) in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta province of Long An.

Industries - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 4:24 pm GMT+7

Malaysian millionaire willing to invest in convicted Vietnamese tycoon’s property project: lawyers

Malaysian millionaire willing to invest in convicted Vietnamese tycoon’s property project: lawyers

Malaysian millionaire Vincent Tan has evinced investment interest in a residential project owned by convicted tycoon Truong My Lan, chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat Group, lawyers for the latter have disclosed.

Real Estate - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 4:17 pm GMT+7

‘Bottleneck of bottlenecks’ continues to dog Vietnam's property, infrastructure projects

‘Bottleneck of bottlenecks’ continues to dog Vietnam's property, infrastructure projects

Limited consultations between state agencies and the parliament’s primary focus on wording are issues with Vietnam’s legal framework adversely affecting property and infrastructure projects, say experts and corporate leaders.

Economy - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 3:40 pm GMT+7

President Xi Jinping hastens construction of 3 Vietnam-China rail routes

President Xi Jinping hastens construction of 3 Vietnam-China rail routes

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for more substantial cooperation between China and Vietnam, including the pacier implementation of three railway routes linking the two nations.

Infrastructure - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 3:08 pm GMT+7

Vietnam developers offer deferred principal payments, interest support to boost year-end sales

Vietnam developers offer deferred principal payments, interest support to boost year-end sales

Vietnamese housing developers are offering several incentives including deferred principal payments and interest support to stimulate demand and boost liquidity as the year nears its end.

Real Estate - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 2:29 pm GMT+7

Australia's EQ Resources acquires TMG Group with Vietnam-based ferrotungsten factory

Australia's EQ Resources acquires TMG Group with Vietnam-based ferrotungsten factory

Australia-based EQ Resources Limited has acquired its fellow firm Tungsten Metals Group (TMG), which owns and operates the largest ferrotungsten (FeW) factory outside China.

Companies - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 11:00 am GMT+7

Techcom Securities becomes largest broker in Vietnam by capital base

Techcom Securities becomes largest broker in Vietnam by capital base

Techcom Securities JSC (TCBS) has become the largest securities company in Vietnam by charter capital after finishing a rights offering last week.

Finance - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 9:11 am GMT+7

Vietnam airport operator ACV looks to better exploit non-aviation service potential: exec

Vietnam airport operator ACV looks to better exploit non-aviation service potential: exec

Vietnam's airports operator ACV expects to earn $145 million from non-aviation services this year, accounting for around 18.83% of its total revenue, which is modest compared to other countries, said deputy general director Nguyen Duc Hung.

Companies - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 7:45 am GMT+7

The Investor to host seminar on removing legal bottlenecks for infrastructure, property investment

The Investor to host seminar on removing legal bottlenecks for infrastructure, property investment

A seminar themed “Removing legal bottlenecks for infrastructure and property investment” will be organized by The Investor in Hanoi on Tuesday.

Companies - Tue, November 19, 2024 | 7:00 am GMT+7

Indonesia promises Asia-Pacific investors more incentives

Indonesia promises Asia-Pacific investors more incentives

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto recently told the press that he will create more incentives and expand special economic zones (SEZs) so as to lure investors from Asia-Pacific.

Southeast Asia - Mon, November 18, 2024 | 11:01 pm GMT+7

Indonesia, Brazil enhance aviation cooperation

Indonesia, Brazil enhance aviation cooperation

Indonesia's state-owned aircraft manufacturer, Dirgantara Indonesia (DI), and Brazilian aerospace company Embraer have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to expand collaboration in the commercial aviation sector.

Southeast Asia - Mon, November 18, 2024 | 11:00 pm GMT+7