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Spain has third 'most powerful' passport in the world

The Local Spain
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Spain has third 'most powerful' passport in the world
A man holding a Spanish passport. Photo: Rodrigo Arangua / AFP.

Spain has the third most powerful passport in the world, according to a new index which ranks the level of visa-free access passports provide to their holders.

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Global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners produces the Henley Passport Index each year using data from the International Air Transport Association.

The 2018 edition ranked Spain's passport as the third best in the world as it provides visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 187 countries, more than that of international heavyweights like the UK, US and China.

Spain shared third place with Finland, France, Italy, Sweden and South Korea. Singapore and Germany were second (providing access to 188 countries), while Japan was first (189).

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Schengen Area countries have traditionally topped the index due to providing open access to large parts of Europe, Henley & Partners noted, but Asian countries are catching up thanks to strengthened international trade and diplomatic relations.

One European country that could see its position in the ranking weaken in the coming years is the UK, with Brexit potentially making trips abroad more complicated.

The Henley index surveys 199 different passports and the access they provide to 227 different destinations. 

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