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How powerful is your passport?

I recently came across this Passport ranking and how many countries you can visit with your passport.

I don’t think anyone is surprised that US and the UK are on top of the list. I can say I am pretty happy about this since I do hold a UK passport.

My life was not always the same and I have definitely been in situations before where I didn’t have the most powerful passport. I am a dual citizen and my second passport is not so powerful so I did have my fair share of visa/country rejections.

You can find the full list here

passport powerMy first trip was to the UK, where I didn’t know I needed a visa. Don’t even ask how I messed this one up! I can’t believe I am even sharing this here as it’s such an embarrassment. I did have a passport and a ticket but no visa for the UK. All I wanted was to come and check my University before I move here, but no one listened to my pleas. So I was happily sent home from the airport. It definitely made for a good laugh and I was happy for low cost airlines.

On two other occasions I was rejected for visas due to the fact that I was a student in the UK and had no ties to the community, so the countries that I wanted to visit thought I wanted to immigrate. You know who you are! I definitely didn’t have such thoughts but I can’t blame them since I know many people will want that.

I can say I am definitely very happy that my passport has more power now and it saves me money on visas and hassle trying to figure what documents I need.

Only problem is when I want to travel with a family member like my mum and I find out yesterday that she needs a visa for Doha. Seriously? Why ?!

So I guess my quest to country free movement continues…

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Top passports, plus the number of countries you can access:

  • U.S., U.K. (147 countries)
  • France, South Korea, Germany (145)
  • Sweden, Italy (144)
  • Denmark, Singapore, Finland, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands (143)
  • Switzerland (142)

Not so happy passports:

  • Congo (Dem. Rep.), Yemen, Central African Republic, Kosovo (41)
  • Equatorial Guinea, Bhutan, Comoros, Burundi (40)
  • Somalia, Eritrea (39)
  • Afghanistan, Djibouti, Iraq, Ethiopia, Nepal (38)
  • South Sudan, Solomon Islands, Palestinian Territories, Sao Tome and Principe, Myanmar (28)

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