Key figures (as of October 2026)
| Global rank, October 2026 | joint 2nd, with Japan and South Korea |
| Destinations without a prior visa, October 2026 | 188 |
| Leading passport, October 2026 | 193 destinations, 5 more than the UAE on the Centre's own calculation |
| Global rank, July 2026 | joint 2nd, up three places since January and the biggest mover of the first half of 2026 |
| Global rank, January 2026 | 5th, with 184 destinations |
| Global rank, January 2025 | 10th, with 185 destinations |
| Twenty-year gain | from 35 destinations in 2006 to 188, a gain of 153, the largest of any passport in the ranking's history |
| Places climbed | 57 places over two decades to January 2026 |
| Scope of the ranking | 199 passports and 227 travel destinations |
The biggest climb in twenty years
The ranking counts the destinations a passport's holders can enter without obtaining a visa in advance, including visa-free entry, a visa on arrival and simple electronic travel authorisations. It covers 199 passports and 227 destinations and is updated through the year, with a main edition each January.
No passport has risen further. In 2006 UAE passport holders could reach 35 destinations without a prior visa. By July 2026 the figure was 188, a gain of 153 destinations and the largest improvement recorded by any passport in the ranking's history. In January 2026 the passport stood 5th, having climbed 57 places over two decades, and it ranked ahead of several long-established passports.
From fifth to second in six months
The pace has quickened recently. In January 2025 the UAE ranked 10th with 185 destinations. A year later it ranked 5th with 184, as scores across the top of the table moved closer together. By July 2026 it had added four destinations to reach 188 and climbed three places to joint 2nd with Japan and South Korea, making it the biggest mover in the first half of the year. The October 2026 edition kept the UAE in joint 2nd on 188, behind only Singapore on 193 and one destination ahead of Sweden in 3rd on 187.
The UAE passport is now the highest-ranked passport in the Arab world. The steady gains reflect sustained diplomatic engagement, international cooperation and the steady widening of visa-free access for Emirati travellers.
A tightly packed top of the table
The ranking gives passports with the same score a shared rank, and each lower score takes the next rank number. In October 2026 the top six ranks were separated by only nine destinations, from 193 at the top to 184 in 6th place, on the Centre's own calculation. Small changes can therefore move a passport by several places. One extra destination for the UAE would make it 2nd alone, while one fewer would leave it joint 3rd with Sweden.
Scores at the top also move between January editions as countries update their visa rules. The leading passport's score was 195 in January 2025 and 192 in January 2026, and the UAE rose five places across that year even though its own score fell by one destination.
What it means
The UAE passport's rise from the middle of the table to the world's top tier is the clearest measure of how far its international partnerships now reach. Whatever the exact rank in January 2027, Emirati travellers can enter more of the world without a prior visa than holders of almost any other passport. Its record of steady gains keeps the top spot within reach over time.
Scenarios: the UAE passport's global rank in January 2027
These probabilities are the Centre's analytical estimates, reasoned from the figures above. The forecast is scored with the multi-category Brier score and, because the bands are ordered, the ranked probability score.* The variable is the UAE passport's global rank in the January 2027 edition of the most widely cited global passport ranking, which ranks passports by the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa. The rank is read as published, with dense ranking: passports with the same score share a rank, and the next lower score takes the next rank number. A shared rank counts as that rank, so joint 5th counts as rank 5 and a tie with the leading passport counts as rank 1. Only the first edition published in January 2027 counts, and later monthly updates or corrections are ignored. The bands cover every possible rank: rank 1 falls in band 1, rank 2 in band 2, rank 3 in band 3, ranks 4 and 5 in band 4, and rank 6 or any lower rank in band 5. If no January 2027 edition is published by 28 February 2027, the forecast is withdrawn.
World's top passport: rank 1, alone or joint
The UAE would need to gain five or more destinations on the current leader in about three months. Its climb shows this is possible over time, but the leader added a destination between July and October 2026, so the weight is low.
Holds second: rank 2, alone or joint
The UAE has held joint 2nd in every monthly edition since March 2026, on an unchanged 188 since June, after its score rose by four destinations in the first half of the year. This is the most likely outcome, but the weight is not higher because a single destination can change the rank in such a close field.
Close third: rank 3
This would follow if the UAE stands one destination below the passports in 2nd place, either through a small change in the visa rules of one destination or through a gain by the passports level with it. With Sweden only one destination behind, this is the most likely alternative.
Upper tier: rank 4 or 5
This would need a net shift of two or three destinations against the passports around it. January editions have reshuffled the top of the table before, so the weight is meaningful.
Wider top group: rank 6 or lower
This would need a shift of four or more destinations against a large group of passports, which would be unusual in three months. The UAE stood 5th as recently as January 2026, so the weight is not zero.
What to watch
- New visa-waiver agreements: mutual waivers signed and entering into force before January 2027.
- The monthly ranking updates: the UAE's score against the leader and the passports level with it.
- The leading passport's score: whether the gap of five destinations narrows or widens.
- Visa rule updates: changes by destinations that affect many passports at once.
- The January 2027 edition: the main annual release, normally published in the first half of January.
Figures as of late October 2026. Probabilities are analytical estimates by the Ghaf Centre for Studies & Research.