Oman's passport improves rankings with more visa-free access
Published: 11:07 AM,Jul 22,2025 | EDITED : 07:07 PM,Jul 22,2025
Muscat: The Sultanate of Oman's Passport has been improving its rankings consistently from 67in 2018 to 56 in 2025, based on several countries, including China and Russia, announcing visa-exemption for Omanis, according to the latest Henley Passport Index report.
The index is powered by Timatic data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and ranks all the world’s passports based on the number of destinations their holders can enter without a prior visa.
China’s visa-free list in 2025 includes Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia, which means that citizens of all Gulf Cooperation Council countries can travel to China with no prior visa.
Oman and Russia decided on a mutual visa exemption agreement for short-term visits, which took effect on July 18, 2025.
Visa-free
Oman citizens can travel without a visa to Albania, Armenia, Bahrain, Barbados, Belarus, Bermuda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brunei, China, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Cook Islands, Dominica, Ecuador, Egypt, Georgia, Haiti, Hong Kong, Iran, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Macao, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Micronesia, Morocco, Niue, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, St Vincent and Grenadines, Suriname, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, Türkiye, Turks and Caicos Islands, Ukraine, UAE, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Zambia
Omanis can get a Visa-on-Arrival in Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Burundi, Cambodia, Cape Verde Islands, Comoro Islands, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Guinea-Bissau, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Maldives, Nepal, Nicaragua, Palau Islands, Paraguay, Rwanda, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tanzania, Tuvalu, and Yemen.
E-visa: Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo (Dem Rep..), Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, India, Liberia, Mauritania, Moldova, Montserrat, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, South Africa, Taiwan (Chinese Taipei), Togo, Uganda, Vietna,m and Zimbabwe.
ETA: Kenya, Seychelles, South Korea, Sri Lanka, St Kitts and Nevis, and United Kingdom.
Singapore still holds the crown as the world’s most powerful passport, with visa-free access to 193 destinations out of 227 globally
The UK and US have each dropped a place in the global passport rankings since January, continuing a long-term downward trend. Once the most powerful passports in the world — the UK in 2015 and the US in 2014 — they now rank 6th and 10th, respectively. The UK currently has visa-free access to 186 destinations, while the US trails with 182. Notably, the US is now on the brink of exiting the Top 10 altogether for the first time in the index’s 20-year history.
The biggest faller is Venezuela, which plunged 15 places from 30th to 45th, followed by the US (down 8 places), Vanuatu (-6 places), the UK (-5 places), and Canada (-4 places).
The index is powered by Timatic data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and ranks all the world’s passports based on the number of destinations their holders can enter without a prior visa.
China’s visa-free list in 2025 includes Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia, which means that citizens of all Gulf Cooperation Council countries can travel to China with no prior visa.
Oman and Russia decided on a mutual visa exemption agreement for short-term visits, which took effect on July 18, 2025.
Visa-free
Oman citizens can travel without a visa to Albania, Armenia, Bahrain, Barbados, Belarus, Bermuda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brunei, China, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Cook Islands, Dominica, Ecuador, Egypt, Georgia, Haiti, Hong Kong, Iran, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Macao, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Micronesia, Morocco, Niue, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, St Vincent and Grenadines, Suriname, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, Türkiye, Turks and Caicos Islands, Ukraine, UAE, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Zambia
Omanis can get a Visa-on-Arrival in Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Burundi, Cambodia, Cape Verde Islands, Comoro Islands, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Guinea-Bissau, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Maldives, Nepal, Nicaragua, Palau Islands, Paraguay, Rwanda, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tanzania, Tuvalu, and Yemen.
E-visa: Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo (Dem Rep..), Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, India, Liberia, Mauritania, Moldova, Montserrat, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, South Africa, Taiwan (Chinese Taipei), Togo, Uganda, Vietna,m and Zimbabwe.
ETA: Kenya, Seychelles, South Korea, Sri Lanka, St Kitts and Nevis, and United Kingdom.
Singapore still holds the crown as the world’s most powerful passport, with visa-free access to 193 destinations out of 227 globally
The UK and US have each dropped a place in the global passport rankings since January, continuing a long-term downward trend. Once the most powerful passports in the world — the UK in 2015 and the US in 2014 — they now rank 6th and 10th, respectively. The UK currently has visa-free access to 186 destinations, while the US trails with 182. Notably, the US is now on the brink of exiting the Top 10 altogether for the first time in the index’s 20-year history.
The biggest faller is Venezuela, which plunged 15 places from 30th to 45th, followed by the US (down 8 places), Vanuatu (-6 places), the UK (-5 places), and Canada (-4 places).