KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian passport remained the world's seventh most powerful in the Henley Passport Index 2026, offering visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 183 destinations.
According to the index, Malaysia shared seventh place with Australia, Canada, Czechia, Latvia, New Zealand, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Within Southeast Asia, Malaysia retained its position as the region's second most powerful passport behind Singapore, which topped the global ranking with visa-free access to 192 destinations. Brunei was ranked 19th with access to 163 destinations.
Japan, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) shared second place, followed by Sweden in third.
Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain shared fourth place, while Austria, Greece, Malta, Portugal and Switzerland were fifth.
Hungary, Poland and the United Kingdom (UK) ranked sixth, ahead of Croatia and Estonia in eighth, and Liechtenstein and Lithuania in ninth.
Malaysia also ranked ahead of several advanced economies, including the United States (US), which shared 10th place with Iceland, and Hong Kong, which was placed 14th.
Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, Thailand ranked 63rd with access to 77 destinations, followed by Indonesia in 68th with access to 70 destinations, the Philippines in 72nd with 65 destinations, Vietnam in 87th, Cambodia in 88th, Laos in 89th and Myanmar in 91st.
The Henley Passport Index ranks passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without obtaining a prior visa.
The 2026 edition assessed 199 passports across 227 travel destinations.
Compiled by Henley & Partners using data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the index is updated regularly to reflect changes in global travel access and mobility. - Bernama
