Malaysia’s passport has strengthened its standing as one of the world’s most powerful travel documents in 2026, climbing to joint second place globally on the Arton Capital Passport Index while maintaining a top-seven position on the Henley Passport Index.
The latest Arton Capital ranking places Malaysia and Singapore jointly in second position with a Mobility Score of 175, behind the United Arab Emirates, which leads the global ranking with a score of 182.
The ranking means Malaysian passport holders can access 175 destinations through various forms of simplified entry. These include 121 destinations offering visa-free access, 46 providing visas on arrival and eight accepting electronic travel authorisations (eTAs). Only 23 destinations currently require Malaysian travellers to obtain a traditional visa before departure.
Malaysia’s latest position represents a notable rise over the past two years. The country was ranked 10th on the Arton index in 2024 before moving up to third place in 2025 and now joint second in 2026.
The improvement has placed Malaysia ahead of Spain and several European countries on the Arton ranking, highlighting the growing international mobility associated with the Malaysian passport.
However, Malaysia’s position is different on the Henley Passport Index, another widely followed global measure of passport strength.
In the latest 2026 Henley ranking, updated through September, Malaysia occupies joint seventh place worldwide, with its passport providing access to 183 destinations without requiring a visa in advance.
Malaysia shares seventh place with Australia, Canada, Czechia, Latvia, New Zealand, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Singapore remains at the top of the Henley ranking, with access to 192 destinations, while Japan, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates share second place with 188 destinations each.
The Malaysian passport also ranks ahead of the United States on the latest Henley list. The US is joint 10th with access to 180 destinations.
The difference between Malaysia’s second-place position on the Arton ranking and seventh-place position on Henley is largely due to the methodologies used by the two indexes.
Arton Capital’s Passport Index considers a broader range of travel-access arrangements when calculating its Mobility Score, including visa-free entry, visa on arrival, electronic travel authorisations and certain electronic visa arrangements.
The Henley Passport Index uses a narrower measure focused primarily on destinations that can be entered without obtaining a visa before departure. Its ranking draws on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and covers 227 destinations.
The different methodologies can therefore produce significantly different positions for the same passport.
Despite the variation, both rankings place Malaysia among the strongest passports globally and identify it as the second-strongest passport in Southeast Asia behind Singapore.
Malaysia’s performance also places it ahead of several other passports in the Arton ranking, including Seychelles at around 22nd, Mauritius at around 28th, Ghana at 69th, Nigeria at 89th and Afghanistan at 99th.
The latest rankings underline Malaysia’s continued expansion of international travel access through visa-waiver agreements and other arrangements that make it easier for Malaysian citizens to travel abroad.
For travellers, however, passport rankings do not replace individual immigration requirements. Visa policies can change, and countries may impose additional entry conditions even when a destination is classified as visa-free or visa-on-arrival.
Malaysian travellers are therefore advised to verify the latest entry requirements with the relevant embassy or immigration authority before travelling.
Shola Akinyele
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