Palau now ranks 47th in the list of most powerful passports in the world according to the 2023 Henley Passport Index (HPI) with Palauan passport holders able to travel visa-free to 121 destinations.
Palau has moved up from its ranking from 48th place in early 2023 to 47th place.
The HPI published its July 2023 update listing 199 passports and a total of 227 travel destinations.
The HPI has combined its data and World Bank GDP data to come up with the ranking.
In the latest ranking, Singapore passports top the ranking and Singaporean passport holders are given visa-free access to 192 destinations.
At the bottom of the ranking is the Afghanistan passport provides visa-free access to only 27 destinations.
Among the Pacific Island Countries, the Solomon Islands top as the most powerful passport, second is Samoa. Solomon Islands passport holders can travel to 132 countries visa-free, while Samoa doesn’t need a prior visa in 131 countries. Globally, the Solomon Islands is ranked 39th. Samoa, 40th.
Tonga is in 41st place, Tuvalu is in 43rd place and Kiribati is in 46th place, Vanuatu is in 56th place.
FSM and RMI are in the same ranking as Palau.
Fiji and Nauru are in the 60th place globally and Papua New Guinea is in the 63rd place.