Malaysia Passport Ranked 12th Most Powerful
Planning to travel abroad for a vacation? Well, you’ll be happy to know that our passport is still quite strong compared to other countries, giving us the ability to travel to more countries.
The latest Henley Passport Index report, which is an index that rates how “powerful” a passport is, ranked Malaysia’s passport at the 10th spot this year. Going up 2 spots compared to 12th place earlier in 2025.
What makes our passports powerful is the fact that we can visit 181 out of 227 travel destinations without the need to apply for a visa. Malaysia shares the 10th spot with Iceland.
Countries that ranked higher than Malaysia include include Canada, the United Kingdom, Greece, and our neighbours across the bay Singapore, maintaining its 1st place with visa-free access to 193 destinations.
| Rank | Country | Visa-free destinations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Singapore | 193 |
| 2 | South Korea | 190 |
| 3 | Japan | 189 |
| 4 | Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland | 187 |
| 5 | Austria, Greece, Norway, Portugal, Sweden | 186 |
| 6 | Hungary, Malta, New Zealand, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia | 185 |
| 7 | Australia, Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom | 188 |
| 8 | Latvia, Canada | 183 |
| 9 | Liechtenstein, Lithuania | 182 |
| 10 | Malaysia, Iceland | 181 |
It should also be noted that Malaysia is currently ranked the 3rd strongest passport, according to the Arton Capital Passport Index — sharing a spot with countries such as France, Germany, and Belgium. However, it should be noted that the Arton index tends to be more generous with its rankings due to including other mobility factors such as e-visas and visa-on-arrival — whereas the Henley index only includes “visa free” travel.
This article was first published in 2023 and has been updated for freshness, accuracy and comprehensiveness.
