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Rankings Lie: The Real Best Passport in 7 Regions · IMI Podcasts

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Passport indices are lying.
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_00: Singapore's passport tops most of them, but only on visa-free access.
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: There's more to a strong passport than how many irrelevant countries you can enter without a visa.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: Most lists don't measure tax obligations, dual citizenship rules, settlement rights, or how border agents treat you when you hand over your document.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: We looked at all seven world regions and picked the best citizenship in each by what matters to you, a globally mobile investor and entrepreneur.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: Let's start with the passport that wins every single ranking.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: Singapore grants visa-free access to 192 destinations.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: In the Asian region, Japan and South Korea share second place at 188.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_00: No other region in the world produces citizenships this dominant, except maybe Europe.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: But Singapore's appeal goes well beyond travel, as we mentioned before.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: The city-state runs a territorial tax system, which means there is no capital gains tax, no inheritance tax, and the top personal income rate is 22% if you earn income locally.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: Singapore scores at the top of global indices for rule of law, economic freedom, and safety.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: Geographically, it sits at the center of Asian commerce.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: So having said all that, why wouldn't Singapore's passport be number one in Asia and maybe even the world?
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: Singapore prohibits dual citizenship entirely.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: That's why.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: If you naturalize overseas and take another country's passport, you lose your Singaporean one.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: That's the deal breaker for anyone pursuing a multi-citizenship strategy.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: You cannot hold the liability as part of a portfolio.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: One of the few jurisdictions in Asia that naturalizes foreigners in five years, South Korea, tied for second in the region at 188 destinations, does permit dual citizenship under certain conditions.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: For those building a portfolio, it may be the more practical choice.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: As a standalone citizenship, though, Singapore is unmatched in Asia.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: Now to Latin America, where some jurisdictions' passport strength may surprise you.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_00: Chile holds the strongest passport in the region, ranked 12th globally, with visa-free access to 174 destinations.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: Brazil and Argentina trail at 169 each.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: The gap looks narrow on paper.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: In practice, it's wide when you consider the fine print.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_00: Chile is the only Latin American country in the U.S.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: visa waiver program, which means that Chilean citizens enter the United States through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization, or ESTER, rather than queuing for a tourist visa interview at the U.S.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: Embassy.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: Beyond that, Chile belongs to three supranational blocks that extend its passport well beyond simple visa-free counts.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: Again, a privilege that Argentina and Brazil do not have.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_00: Mercosur membership provides settlement rights across nearly all of South America.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: Once you have citizenship in one state, you can get residency in any other and even fast-track your naturalization process.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: Pacific Alliance membership connects Chileans to Mexico, Colombia and Peru, and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation eligibility grants Chilean citizens access to the APEC business travel card, which streamlines entry into Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Australia, and a dozen other important global business markets and economies.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_00: Dual citizenship is permitted in Chile, and naturalization takes just five years.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: Irish and Chilean citizenship together has been called the world's most effective two-passport combo.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_00: We covered that dichotomy in the video in the top right corner of your screen.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: Between them you have residency rights in Europe, the UK, South America, and extensive travel privileges in North America, East Asia and the rest of the world, with just two documents.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_00: Speaking of North America, Canada ranks eighth on the Henley Index with visa-free access to 181 destinations.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: The United States sits at 10th with 179 after dropping out of the top 10 travel documents for the first time.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: On citizenship fundamentals, Canada pulls ahead though, as it allows dual citizenship without restriction, and more importantly, for you, does not impose citizenship-based taxation.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: So once you establish non-residency outside of Canada, you stop filing Canadian returns.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: That's a stark contrast to the US, which taxes citizens on worldwide income regardless of where they live and enforces compliance through FATCA, FBAR, and a host of other far-reaching banking tax measures.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: Canadian nationals also have one of the world's strongest border reputations.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: A Canadian passport invites minimal scrutiny at immigration checkpoints.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: The country scores in the top ten globally for quality of life, political stability, and personal safety, with a consular network extending across more than 150 countries.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: The US passport opens doors.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: Don't get us wrong, from a business standpoint, America is in its own top tier.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: But citizenship-based taxation, extensive reporting even when non-resident, and an increasingly restrictive entry pressure toward foreign nationals have eroded its relative value.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_00: Because of this, the U.S.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: has suffered significant passport ranking declines over most indices.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: Now to a country in Oceania, similar to Canada in many ways.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: New Zealand and Australia sit side by side on the index.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: New Zealand ranks sixth with 183 visa-free destinations, and Australia is seventh with 182.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_00: Both participate in the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement, which lets citizens of each country live and work in the other indefinitely.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_00: But where New Zealand pulls ahead is tax treatment and relative neutrality.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: New Zealand imposes no capital gains, wealth, gift, or estate tax.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: Australia levies capital gains tax on most assets and applies a higher overall tax burden to residents.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: For an investor or entrepreneur structuring around a second citizenship, that difference is material.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_00: Also, despite Australia's global activity, New Zealand pursues an independent foreign policy, allowing it to maintain strong security ties and operate outside major power blocks.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: New Zealand permits dual citizenship without restriction.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: Its surging Active Invest-Ups visa program offers a residence-by-investment pathway for high net worth individuals with citizenship eligibility after five years.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: And similar to Canada, the country scores in the top ten globally for quality of life, economic freedom, and political stability.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: For those willing to make the investment and meet the residency requirements, a New Zealand citizenship combines a powerful passport, a favorable tax environment, automatic access to the Australian labour market, and the stability of one of the world's most trusted democracies.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: The UAE holds the best citizenship in the Middle East and North Africa, but it also happens to be one you almost certainly cannot get.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: In the 2000s, the UAE passport ranked outside the top 50 globally.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: It now sits fifth in some indices, with travel access to 184 destinations.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_00: That aggressive climb is the largest any country has recorded in the last few decades.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_00: The Emirati passport even outranks the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and the United States.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_00: Two decades of aggressive diplomacy have gotten it there.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_00: Since 2015, the UAE has signed visa waiver agreements with the EU, Russia, China, Israel, Mexico, South Africa, and dozens of others.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: Emirati citizens pay no personal income tax, capital gains tax, or inheritance tax.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_00: The UAE Golden Visa offers five and ten-year renewable residency, but it does not lead to citizenship.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_00: Emirati nationality is granted only at the discretion of the country's rulers.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: For those already holding UAE citizenship, it's among the world's most valuable.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: For those looking to acquire citizenship in a region notorious for naturalization requirements and processes, Israel offers the strongest alternative through its law of return citizenship by descent policy.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_00: Now to Africa, where our choice for the strongest passport might surprise you.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_00: Seychelles holds Africa's top-ranked visa-free travel passport at 26th globally, with access to around 156 destinations.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_00: Mauritius trails with approximately 147 destinations.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_00: On a citizenship level, though, Mauritius is the stronger pick.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_00: The country operates a territorial tax system where foreign sourced income not remitted to Mauritius is not taxed.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_00: Mauritians, by birth or descent, may hold dual citizenship, a flexibility that Seychelles largely denies, just like Singapore.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_00: Mauritius also has a credible financial services sector with a well-regulated banking system and a network of double taxation treaties across Africa, Asia, and Europe.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_00: Through an investment migration lens, it offers a few established immigration pathways that can lead to citizenship after meeting residency requirements.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_00: Seychelles wins on travel access alone.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_00: But for a globally mobile individual evaluating many different factors like tax treatment, dual citizenship, financial infrastructure, and long-term optionality, Mauritius is the better citizenship.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: If you want to explore specific residency or citizenship pathways in Africa or any other region, you can find, sort, and explore more than 275 programs on IMI daily.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_00: Then contact qualified professionals who can help you plan, apply, or even invest.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_00: Lastly, to Europe, where Sweden wins on raw numbers.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_00: It leads Europe on visa-free access.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_00: But raw numbers are precisely what this video is pushing past.
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_00: What separates Ireland from every other EU passport is everything beyond the visa-free count.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_00: Irish citizenship grants full settlement rights across the entire European Union, 27 countries.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_00: It also gives you full living and working rights in the United Kingdom through the Common Travel Area, or CTA, which survived Brexit.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: No other EU passport offers both the EU and the UK in a single document.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_00: Ireland does not impose citizenship-based taxation.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: You can naturalize, move to a territorial tax jurisdiction, and owe nothing to Dublin.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, Ireland's remittance-based non-domicile tax system can be quite favourable for foreign investors living in the country.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: Compare that to the United States, which taxes its citizens on worldwide income no matter where they live.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: The Irish passport attracts minimal suspicion at borders.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_00: Ireland does not project military force, does not start wars, and has more than 80 diplomatic missions worldwide for a population of just five million.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_00: An estimated 80 million people worldwide claim Irish descent, which means that several million people across the US, UK, Australia, Canada, and Argentina may qualify for arguably the strongest citizenship in the entire world.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: If you don't qualify by descent, naturalization takes five years of residency but is an uphill battle.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_00: So all this to say these passports at the top of each region are not interchangeable.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_00: Singapore's is powerful and inflexible.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_00: Ireland's is versatile and underestimated.
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_00: The UAE's is ascendant but essentially unacquirable.
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: Chile's is the best value in the Americas.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_00: Choosing the right passports or the right combination of passports depends on where you want to live, how you earn your income, what tax benefits and programs fit your unique situation, and what freedoms you refuse to compromise.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_00: The best passport for you might not be the one with the highest number next to its name.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_00: As we mentioned before, Chile and Ireland are IMI's pick for the strongest two passport combination, and we explain exactly why in the video on your screen now.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_00: Who knows?
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe these countries will launch, or relaunch in Ireland's case, investment migration programs to make naturalization even easier.