If you have a New Zealand passport count yourself lucky; it’s been ranked one of the most powerful in the world.

The 2024 Henley Passport Index has been released; a ranking uses exclusive data from the International Air Transport Authority (IATA) to calculate how powerful 199 different passports are.

Passports are ranked according to their global mobility by calculating how many nations a passport holder can visit visa-free.

In 2023, New Zealand was ranked joint sixth but has steadily moved up the list. This year, the black and silver passport has been ranked fourth, allowing Kiwi travellers to visit 190 destinations here - without a visa.

New Zealand shares fourth place with the UK, Norway, Switzerland, Denmark and Belgium.

Singapore takes first place, offering passport holders 195 visa-free destinations they can travel to. The second place is jointly held by France, Italy, Germany, Spain and Japan.

In third, 191 destinations are available to those with passports from Ireland, Sweden, Austria, Finland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and South Korea.

Is a New Zealand passport more powerful than Australia’s?

According to the latest index, the Kiwi passport is better for travellers, but only just. Australia is ranked fifth with Portugal and both have visa-free access to 189 destinations.

What is the deciding destination Aussies can’t visit without a visa but Kiwis can? Chile.

All other destinations, from the Vatican City to Uzbekistan welcome travellers from Australia and New Zealand without requiring a visa.

This is the second time New Zealand ranked fourth in the Henley Passport Index and is the highest ranking it’s achieved since the index started in 2006. In previous years, the passport has been hovered between fourth and ninth place.

The bottom-ranked passports in position 100 to 103 are Pakistan, Yemen, Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan in last place. The latter passport only offers visa-free travel to 26 other destinations.

What counts as ‘visa-free’ travel?

Now, just because a Kiwi can travel to a country “visa-free” it doesn’t mean they don’t need to do additional paperwork before travelling.

For example, the US is marked as a “visa-fee” destination for Kiwis, however, you must have an approved ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorisation) before boarding a flight to the US. This can be done online in 20 minutes but must still be done.

Meanwhile, other countries, such as Australia or Indonesia, grant Kiwi visitors an automatic temporary visitor visa on arrival. These almost always are valid for a limited period of time (typically 30 to 90 days) and only for certain reasons such as holidays.

What countries are not ‘visa-free’ for Kiwis?

According to the most recent Henley Passport Index, Kiwis cannot visit well-known destinations such as India, Bhutan, Cuba, Vietnam, Yemen, Papua New Guinea and Russia.

Other, less popular destinations include Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo Cote d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia Lybia, Mali, Nauru, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Sao Tome and Principe, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Togo, Turkmenistan and Uganda.