How many countries South Africans can visit visa-free

Arton Capital, a provider of residency and citizenship solutions, has launched its latest edition of the Passport Index – a ranking system to reveal the benefits of each passport from around the world.

The index has a new ‘Welcoming Rank’ which shows the most and least welcoming countries in the world, ranked solely on the the number of countries they accept visa-free or with visa on arrival.

Essentially, the Index serves to understand and visualize the power of each passport on the holder’s identity, opportunity, mobility and overall quality of life.

Germany ranks the most powerful passport in the world, with a visa-free score of 157, followed by Sweden, Finland, Italy and Switzerland.

German and Swedish passport holders are able to travel to 157 countries – 117 visa-free/40 with visa on arrival.

South Africa is 87th on the list, with access to 90 countries – 58 visa-free/32 with visa on arrival.

Afghanistan is last on the list of 199 countries – with access to only 25 countries – 3 visa-free/22 with visa on arrival. Pakistan is the second from bottom, with access to only 28 countries, while Iraq has free access to 31 countries.

The South African passports offers visa-free travelling to most SADC countries, as well as almost all South American nations (excluding Suriname, French Guiana, Mexico, Cuba, and Puerto Rico).

Individual Passport Power Rank 2016:

For its welcoming ranking, Arton Capital notes that countries are ranked by how many passports they accept visa-free, with visa on arrival or with Electronic Travel Authority (eTA).

A number of countries have a welcoming ranking of 198 including Burundi, Cambodia, Capoe Verde, Mozambique and Uganda.

The strictest countries have a score of 0 and they include Turkmenistan, Somalia, and Afghanistan.

South Africa is ranked 59th, with a welcoming score of 76.

The full index can be found here

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