Somalia’s Passport Ranks 100th on 2025 Henley Index, 33 Visa-Free Countries

MOGADISHU — Somalia’s passport has climbed to 100th place on the 2025 Henley Passport Index, giving Somali travelers visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 33 destinations, according to data released by Henley & Partners in October 2025.

While labeled “2025,” the latest Henley ranking reflects travel-access conditions measured during 2024, a methodological detail that underscores how passport power often lags behind diplomatic change by a year. Even so, the new standing marks one of Somalia’s strongest positions in more than a decade and extends a steady rebound from its 2021 low.

The Henley Passport Index evaluates 199 passports and their access to 227 destinations using International Air Transport Association data. Somalia remains near the lower end of global mobility; visas are still required for 193 destinations, including the entire Schengen Area, the United States, the United Kingdom and most Gulf states.

The trajectory, however, is moving in the right direction. Somalia improved from 104th in 2023, briefly reached 99th in 2024 and now sits at 100th. Over a longer arc, the country ranked 81st in 2006 before sliding through the late 2000s and early 2010s and experiencing volatility between 2013 and 2021, when it fell to 111th—its lowest point on record.

• Current ranking: 100th on the 2025 Henley Passport Index
• Visa-free/visa-on-arrival access: 33 destinations
• Coverage: 199 passports, 227 destinations (IATA data)
• Recent movement: 104th (2023), 99th (2024), 100th (2025)
• Historical range: 81st (2006); low of 111th (2021)

Government officials have credited gradual gains to expanded diplomatic outreach and targeted discussions on visa facilitation, particularly for diplomatic and service passport holders. Analysts say those moves, while limited in scope, indicate a renewed push to rebuild international partnerships after decades of conflict and institutional instability. The consistency of the recent climb suggests Somalia is slowly re-engaging with the architecture that governs global mobility.

For ordinary Somali citizens, improved access—even from a low base—can make a practical difference. Visa-free or visa-on-arrival arrangements can ease short-notice travel for business and trade, lower barriers to medical treatment abroad, and widen access to educational and training opportunities in participating countries. That said, major corridors remain shut without prior visas, keeping business travel costly, family reunification complicated and student pathways narrow for many applicants.

The global contrast is stark. The world’s highest-ranking passports now provide entry to more than 190 destinations without a prior visa, highlighting the distance Somalia must cover to achieve comparable freedom of movement. In that context, the country’s return to a mid-2010s level represents a base to build from rather than a destination reached.

Sustaining the upward trend will likely require a mix of bilateral negotiations, administrative upgrades to travel and border systems, and continued progress on security, governance and economic reforms that underpin trust in identity documents. Incremental visa-waiver agreements—especially within Africa and with partners in Asia and the Middle East—could deliver near-term wins, while longer-term talks with European and North American counterparts will hinge on durable institutional improvements.

For now, the 2025 Henley ranking signals measured progress and a clearer path forward: Somalia is edging back into the global mobility conversation, one agreement at a time.

By Ali Musa

Axadle Times international–Monitoring.