South Africa’s passport power went up in the past year as Egypt granted us visa-free access. You can now visit 106 destinations visa-free – out of 227 measured by Henley & Partners for its annual passport ranking and Global Mobility Report.
“SA is currently ranked 53rd with visa-free access to 106 destinations (out of 227) worldwide. It has climbed up the ranking two places since July 2022 when it was ranked 55th with visa-free access to 105 destinations (47% of the world’s destinations).
The new destination to which the country now has access visa-free is Egypt. “This does not necessarily mean it has gained access to two additional. Sometimes, a passport drops down (like the US and UK) not because they have lost access but because other passports have gained more visa-free destinations, so it pushes them further down the list,” says Sarah Nicklin, the global head of public relations for Henley & Partners. In 2009, our passports were in 35th spot of the indexed countries based on data from the International Air Transport Association.
The consultancy focuses on residence and citizen programmes for people who want a number of passports, especially those with passports that offer less mobility.
“We have access to nearly half the world visa-free, but these destinations account for only 15% of global GDP in terms of economic growth and opportunity,” says Nicklin.