Once again Australian passport makes the annual Henley & Partners Top 10 for ease of travel

 

ABC News, 15 January 2023:

The passports of the world have been ranked according to how powerful they are by an international citizenship assistance firm, and Australia has come out in the top 10 once again.

Henley & Partners produces a list of the most powerful passports each year, with Japan coming in first place for the sixth year in a row.

People who hold Australian passports can travel to 185 countries with relative ease — but there's still a long list of places that require paperwork…….

1: Japan— visa-free score: 193

2: Singapore and South Korea— visa-free score: 192

3: Germany and Spain— visa-free score: 190

4: Finland, Italy and Luxembourg— visa-free score: 189

5: Austria, Denmark, Netherlands and Sweden— visa-free score: 188

6: France, Ireland, Portugal and United Kingdom— visa-free score: 187

7: Belgium, Czech Republic, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland and United States— visa-free score: 186

8: Australia, Canada, Greece and Malta— visa-free score: 185

9: Hungary and Poland — visa-free score: 184

10: Lithuania and Slovakia — visa-free score: 183

11: Latvia and Slovenia — visa-free score: 182

12: Estonia — visa-free score: 181

13: Iceland — visa-free score: 180

14: Malaysia — visa-free score: 179

15: Liechtenstein and the United Arab Emirates — visa-free score: 178

16: Cyprus — visa-free score: 177

17: Romania — visa-free score: 175

18: Bulgaria, Chile, Croatia and Monaco — visa-free score: 174

19: Hong Kong (SAR China — visa-free score: 171

20: Argentina and Brazil — visa-free score: 170

21: San Marino — visa-free score: 169

22: Andorra — visa-free score: 168

23: Brunei — visa-free score: 166

24: Barbados — visa-free score: 163

25: Israel and Mexico — visa-free score: 159

26: St. Kitts and Nevis — visa-free score: 157

27: Bahamas — visa-free score: 155

28: Vatican City — visa-free score: 154

29: Seychelles and Uruguay — visa-free score: 153

30: St. Vincent and the Grenadines — visa-free score: 152

31: Antigua and Barbuda, tying with Trinidad and Tobago — visa-free score: 151

32: Costa Rica — visa-free score: 150

33: St. Lucia — visa-free score: 147

34: Grenada and Mauritius — visa-free score: 146

35: Dominica and Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) — visa-free score: 145

36: Macao (SAR China), Panama and Ukraine — visa-free score: 144

37: Paraguay — visa-free score: 142

38: Peru — visa-free score: 136

38: Serbia — visa-free score: 136

39: Colombia, Guatemala and Honduras — visa-free score: 133

40: El Salvador, Samoa and Solomon Islands — visa-free score: 132

41: Tonga — visa-free score: 130

42: Venezuela — visa-free score: 129

43: Nicaragua and Tuvalu — visa-free score: 128

44: North Macedonia — visa-free score: 125

45: Kiribati and Montenegro — visa-free score: 124

46: Marshall Islands — visa-free score: 123

47: Moldova — visa-free score: 121

48: Palau Islands — visa-free score: 120

49: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Micronesia and the Russian Federation — visa-free score: 118

50: Georgia — visa-free score: 116

51: Albania — visa-free score: 115

52: Turkey — visa-free score: 110

53: South Africa — visa-free score: 106

54: Belize — visa-free score: 103

55: Qatar — visa-free score: 100

56: Vanuatu — visa-free score: 98

57: Kuwait — visa-free score: 7

58: Timor-Leste — visa-free score: 94

59: Ecuador — visa-free score: 92

60: Nauru — visa-free score: 90

61: Maldives — visa-free score: 89

62: Fiji and Guyana — visa-free score: 88

63: Bahrain, Botswana and Jamaica — visa-free score: 87

64: Papua New Guinea — visa-free score: 83

65: Oman and Saudi Arabia — visa-free score: 82

66: Bolivia — visa-free score: 80

66: China — visa-free score: 80

67: Namibia — visa-free score: 79

68: Belarus and Thailand — visa-free score: 78

69: Lesotho — visa-free score: 77

70: Kazakhstan and Suriname — visa-free score: 76

71: Eswatini — visa-free score: 75

72: Malawi — visa-free score: 74

73: Kenya — visa-free score: 73

74: Tanzania — visa-free score: 72

75: Indonesia and Zambia — visa-free score: 71

76: Azerbaijan, Dominican Republic and Tunisia — visa-free score: 70

77: The Gambia — visa-free score: 69

78: Philippines and Uganda — visa-free score: 67

79: Armenia, Cape Verde Islands and Zimbabwe — visa-free score: 66

80: Cuba, Ghana and Morocco — visa-free score: 65

81: Kyrgyzstan and Sierra Leone — visa-free score: 64

82: Mongolia and Mozambique — visa-free score: 62

83: Benin and Rwanda — visa-free score: 61

84: Sao Tome and Principe, tying with Tajikistan — visa-free score: 60

85: India, Mauritania and Uzbekistan — visa-free score: 59

86: Burkina Faso — visa-free score: 58

87: Cote d'Ivoire, Gabon and Senegal — visa-free score: 57

88: Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Madagascar, Togo and Vietnam — visa-free score: 55

89: Cambodia and Mali — visa-free score: 54

90: Algeria, Bhutan, Chad, Comoro Islands, Egypt, Jordan, Niger and Turkmenistan — visa-free score: 53

91: Central African Republic and Guinea-Bissau — visa-free score: 52

92: Angola and Cameroon — visa-free score: 51

93: Burundi and Laos — visa-free score: 50

94: Congo (Rep.), Haiti and Liberia — visa-free score: 49

95: Djibouti — visa-free score: 48

96: Myanmar — visa-free score: 47

97: Ethiopia and Nigeria — visa-free score: 46

98: Eritrea and South Sudan — visa-free score: 44

99: Iran — visa-free score: 43

100: Congo (Dem. Rep.), Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Sudan — visa-free score: 42

101: Bangladesh, Kosovo and Libya — visa-free score: 41

102: North Korea — visa-free score: 40

103: Nepal and Palestinian Territory — visa-free score: 38

104: Somalia — visa-free score: 35

105: Yemen — visa-free score: 34

106: Pakistan — visa-free score: 32

107: Syria — visa-free score: 30

108: Iraq — visa-free score: 29

109: Afghanistan — visa-free score: 27

Rankings, visa-free scores and placenames have been replicated as they were listed in Henley & Partners data

What about Russia and Ukraine?

Russia's invasion of Ukraine hasn't affected either country in terms of the Henley Passport Index, with a press release saying there were in roughly the same position since the war began:

• Ukraine ranks in 36th position with a score of 144

• Russia ranks in 49th position with a score of 118

However, the firm said that while they weren't majorly affected "on paper", there were practical differences.

"Due to airspace closures and sanctions, Russian citizens are effectively barred from travelling throughout most of the developed world, with the marked exceptions of Dubai and Istanbul, which have become focal points," the firm's statement said.

"Ukrainians, on the other hand, have been granted the right to live and work in the [European Union] for up to three years under an emergency plan in response to what has become Europe's biggest refugee crisis this century."

The firm said that, if Ukraine was successful in joining the European Union, it would probably break into the top 10 most powerful passports in the world.

• List of countries which allow visa-free travel to holders of Australian passports:

Africa

Botswana

Eswatini

Lesotho

Mauritius

Mayotte

Morocco

Namibia

Reunion

Senegal

South Africa

The Gambia

Tunisia

Americas

Argentina

Belize

Bermuda

Bolivia

Brazil

Colombia

Costa Rica

Ecuador

El Salvador

Falkland Islands

French Guiana

Guatemala

Guyana

Honduras

Mexico

Nicaragua

Panama

Peru

Uruguay

Venezuela

Asia

Hong Kong (SAR China)

Indonesia

Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan

Macao (SAR China)

Malaysia

Philippines

Singapore

Taiwan (Chinese Taipei)

Thailand

Uzbekistan

Caribbean

Anguilla

Antigua and Barbuda

Aruba

Bahamas

Barbados

Bonaire; St. Eustatius and Saba

British Virgin Islands

Cayman Islands

Curacao

Dominica

Dominican Republic

French West Indies

Grenada

Haiti

Jamaica

Montserrat

St Kitts and Nevis

St Lucia

St Maarten

St Vincent and the Grenadines

Turks and Caicos Islands

Europe

Albania

Andorra

Austria

Belarus

Belgium

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bulgaria

Croatia

Cyprus

Czech Republic

Denmark

Estonia

Faroe Islands

Finland

France

Georgia

Germany

Gibraltar

Greece

Greenland

Hungary

Iceland

Ireland

Italy

Kosovo

Latvia

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Malta

Moldova

Monaco

Montenegro

Netherlands

North Macedonia

Norway

Poland

Portugal

Romania

San Marino

Serbia

Slovakia

Slovenia

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

Ukraine

United Kingdom

Vatican City

Middle East

Armenia

Iraq

Israel

Oman

Palestinian Territory

Qatar

Oceania

Cook Islands

Fiji

French Polynesia

Guam

Kiribati

Micronesia

New Caledonia

New Zealand

Niue

Northern Mariana Islands

Vanuatu

Henley & Partners, 10 January 2023:

By combining Henley Passport Index data and World Bank GDP data, the new research ranks all 199 passports in the world in terms of their Henley Passport Power (HPP) score, a term that indicates the percentage of global GDP each passport provides to its holders’ visa-free. 

Take the Japanese passport, for instance, that gives visa-free access to 193 destinations (85% of the world). 

Collectively, these countries account for a whopping 98% of the global economy (with Japan’s own GDP contribution being around 5%). 

To contrast this figure with a passport from the lower end of the spectrum, Nigerian passport holders can access only 46 destinations visa-free (20% of the world), with these countries accounting for just 1.5% of global GDP. At the bottom of the ranking, the Afghanistan passport provides visa-free access to just 12% of the world and less than 1% of global economic output.

Australia not as tolerant of British far right nutters since global COVID-19 pandemic entered its second year

 

IMAGE: ABC News, 18 July 2021

The Guardian, 18 July 2021:

British far-right figure Katie Hopkins has been dumped as a cast member of Seven’s Big Brother VIP and will leave the country after breaching her contract, Guardian Australia can reveal.

Hopkins, 46, broadcast a live video from what she claimed was a Sydney hotel room on Saturday morning, describing Covid-19 lockdowns as “the greatest hoax in human history” while joking about elaborate plans to breach quarantine rules.

On Saturday home affairs minister, Karen Andrews, ordered an urgent review of whether Hopkins has breached her visa conditions by publicly flouting quarantine rules.

But the review has been superseded by a decision to terminate her contract, Guardian Australia understands.

Talent contracts have an out-clause: don’t bring the network into disrepute.

It is also a requirement of any overseas personality to comply with visa conditions.

Seven confirmed the decision on Sunday afternoon.

“Seven Network and Endemol Shine Australia confirm that Katie Hopkins is not part of Big Brother VIP,” the network said. “Seven and Endemol Shine strongly condemn her irresponsible and reckless comments in hotel quarantine.”

Hopkins was contracted to Shine rather than Seven.

Last year, Hopkins had her Twitter account with 1.1m followers permanently suspended for violating the platform’s “hateful conduct” policy.

Hopkins, who was repeatedly retweeted by former US president Donald Trump, was removed to “keep Twitter safe”, according to the social media platform.

Hopkins previously compared migrants to cockroaches and claimed the photograph of a dead Syrian boy lying on a beach that sparked a wave of compassion across Europe was staged, as well as stating that people with dementia should not “block” hospital beds…..

UPDATE

Sounds like Ms. Hopkins is on her way back to the U.K. as I write.....

NSW Police, News, Monday, 19 July 2021 04:21:23 PM:

Police attached to the hotel quarantine operation were notified of an alleged breach of the Public Health Order (Covid-19 Air Transportation Quarantine) at a hotel on Sussex Street, Sydney, about 8.45pm on Friday (16 July 2021).

Following inquiries, a 46-year-old woman was issued a $1000 Penalty Infringement Notice for not wear face covering yesterday (Sunday 18 July 2021).

NSW Police assisted Australian Border Force with the transfer of the woman to Sydney International Airport this afternoon (Monday 19 July 2021), following the cancellation of her visa, departing to the United Kingdom.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison caught out in yet another lie about Australia's closed national border

“Australia's borders were slammed shut in March last year as the coronavirus spread across the world, with the federal government trying to take advantage of the nation's island geography to safeguard it from the worst of the deadly virus. In an interview with News Corp, Mr Morrison said he did not believe Australians had an "appetite" for opening borders if it meant having to deal with more coronavirus outbreaks, lockdowns and social restrictions. "We have to be careful not to exchange that way of life for what everyone else has," he said. In a later post on Facebook, he warned borders would only be opened "when it is safe to do so". [ABC News, 9 May 2021]

“The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has revealed more than 36,000 Australians remain stranded overseas with 4,860 considered vulnerable.…...In September, Prime Minister Scott Morrison promised to get as many people as possible on the list home by Christmas.” [AAP General News Wire, 24 March 2021]

If one reads the aforementioned quotes it would seem that Australia has had an all but impenetrable border since the COVID-19 global pandemic began and, that Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has made it his priority to repatriate his fellow citizens stranded overseas by travel restrictions.

Then as the country braces for what is feared will be a widespread outbreak of a highly infectious SARS-Cov-2 variant*, this appears in the media - revealing that after being thwarted by the National Cabinet in his desire to open the national border at the earliest opportunity Morrison then found an underhand way of doing so. 

Note: * the Delta variant of SARS-Cov-2 which causes a highly infectious form of COVID-19 came into this country via an infected overseas traveller.

The Sydney Morning Herald, 1 July 2021, excerpt:

The data obtained by the Herald and The Age is collated from incoming passenger cards and is designed to capture the main reason for the journey for both visitors arriving and residents returning to Australia. The government publishes the data online.

During April, 2226 cards listed the passengers’ reason for arriving as “business, conferences or exhibitions”.

In the same month, 8067 cards listed “visiting family or friends” and “taking a holiday” as the reason for travel. The number was down from its peak last December when there were 10,536 arrivals for those reasons in the lead up to the Christmas holidays.

Employment was given as the reason for 5200 passenger movements while 817 of the April arrivals were for education.

Seventy two people were “attending a conference” in April – marking 533 total trips for conferences made since July last year.

The Herald excluded travellers from New Zealand from the statistics, which accounted for many of the 53,872 arrivals recorded in April…..

It was revealed by the Queensland government that its latest outbreak spawned from an unvaccinated traveller allowed to “come and go repeatedly” between Australia and Indonesia, doing multiple stints in hotel quarantine.

Meanwhile, in South Australia, the ABC reported authorities allowed a family to fly in from Indonesia on a privately funded medevac flight after testing positive for the highly infectious Delta strain.

The data shows 2400 arrivals were citizens of the UK, 1900 were citizens of China, 1400 were citizens of India and 1100 were US citizens.

“Thousands of people are being allowed to travel here who are not stranded Aussies,” Mr Miles said.

“In addition to the non-Australians returning, every month about 40,000 Australian citizens and about 6000 permanent visa holders are allowed to leave the country.

“Many of them seek to return. Rejoining the queue, going back through hotel quarantine, putting our community at risk.”

However, Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews accused the Queensland government of misrepresenting the data.

“The data from the Australian Border Force sets out very clearly that, on average, 80 per cent of returning travellers to Australia are either Australian citizens, permanent residents, or immediate family members,” she said.

She said Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk was “arguing against her own travel to Tokyo” to attend the Olympics.

In response to questions about the infected traveller from Indonesia, Ms Andrews said the government was “going through a process of looking at” exemptions allowing people to make multiple trips despite the border closures.

However, she did not believe it was necessary to lower caps on overseas arrivals.

“It’s one of the issues that we have to deal with now, which is dealing with specific needs of our economy while at the same time making sure that we are able to bring in as many vulnerable people and return as many Australians as we possibly can,” she said.

According to the Australian Border Force, between March 2020 and the end of May this year, 156,507 Australian citizens and permanent residents were granted exemptions to depart Australia, while 84,031 requests were denied.

Over the same period 49,017 foreign nationals were granted an exemption to travel into Australia and 104,507 had their request denied.

“More than half of these approvals were for those proving a critical skill to Australia,” a Border Force spokesperson said.

A request may cover more than one person and individual travellers may have made multiple requests.

ABC News, 1 July 2021:

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan has expressed his anger at the "large group of people" leaving Australia during the pandemic to travel overseas, some of whom he said had been enjoying foreign holidays.

Mr McGowan said 82 people had been on four overseas trips, while eight people had left five times and two people six times.

"In other words, there's a large group of people who have been overseas on multiple occasions. And every time they go overseas, they increase the risk," he said.

The Premier said many of those trips were unnecessary, and allowing people to go overseas was "the biggest [COVID] threat vector" Australia faced.

"People book a conference in Europe, and then have a holiday while they're over there, and then come back and join the queue," Mr McGowan said.

"It's just not right. We need to crack down on this."

He said it was time to limit the number of people allowed to travel internationally.

"I actually think there is a strong argument that before anyone can go overseas, they should be vaccinated, and then we should actually crack down hugely on the number of people allowed to go overseas." 

This is nuts!!! I must find a conference, I guess. ::sigh::#auspol #COVID19Aus #Quarantine
Figures from just WA. McGowan reported today. pic.twitter.com/NZ019AU4XD

— 🍩🍩CreatetheWorldYouWant🍩🍩 (@JL_Whitaker) July 1, 2021