Passports are often viewed as a ticket to the world, but some may actually hold more power than others.
In fact: Singapore is now the most powerful.
That’s according to the 2017 Global Passport Power Rank, a worldwide ranking from advisory firm Arton Capital, which specializes in investor programs for residence and citizenship around the world. The list ranks passports worldwide based on a “total visa-free score,” which assigns passports a point for each country their holders can visit without a visa, with a visa on arrival or by using electronic travel authorization. Singapore scored a 159 based on the metric, meaning its holders can easily visit 159 countries.
[READ MORE: 9 Places the U.S. Government Doesn’t Want You to Travel Right Now]
This is the first time an Asian country has had the most powerful passport in the world, with the most superlative spot historically going to European countries, according to Arton.
Singapore recently surpassed Germany in the ranking after Paraguay removed visa requirements for Singaporean passport holders. The Asian country had previously been tied with Germany, which now follows in second. Sweden and South Korea are close behind with a visa-free score of 157.
[READ: These Countries Have the Most Open Travel Policies]
The United States, which has recently undergone extensive policy debate over passports and visa requirements, did not land in the top 5 power categories. It received a visa-free score of 154.
Afghanistan ranks lowest on the list, with a visa-free score of just 22.
A look at the countries that rank among the top 5 highest visa-free scores are listed below, and a full listing of the passport power ranking can be found here.
| Country | Passport Power Rank | Visa-Free Score |
| Singapore | 1 | 159 |
| Germany | 2 | 158 |
| Sweden | 3 | 157 |
| South Korea | 3 | 157 |
| Denmark | 4 | 156 |
| Finland | 4 | 156 |
| Italy | 4 | 156 |
| France | 4 | 156 |
| Spain | 4 | 156 |
| Norway | 4 | 156 |
| Japan | 4 | 156 |
| United Kingdom | 4 | 156 |
| Luxembourg | 5 | 155 |
| Switzerland | 5 | 155 |
| Netherlands | 5 | 155 |
| Belgium | 5 | 155 |
| Austria | 5 | 155 |
| Portugal | 5 | 155 |
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Passports From These Countries Are the Most Powerful for Travel originally appeared on usnews.com
