Malaysia has climbed from third to second place in the 2026 Passport Index Global Ranking, sharing the position with Singapore and giving Malaysian travellers access to 175 destinations.
Malaysia’s passport has risen to second place globally in the 2026 Passport Index Global Ranking, marking an improvement from its third-place position in the previous ranking. The country now shares the second spot with Singapore, while the United Arab Emirates remains in first place.
According to the latest Passport Index 2026 data, Malaysia has a mobility score of 175, meaning Malaysian passport holders can access 175 destinations without obtaining a traditional visa before travelling. The ranking places Malaysia among the passports offering the greatest international travel mobility this year.
The United Arab Emirates leads the ranking with a mobility score of 182, while Singapore and Malaysia both have scores of 175. Spain follows in fourth place with 174, while a large group of European countries have scores of 173.
Malaysia Shares Second Place With Singapore
Malaysia's second-place position is shared with Singapore, although the two countries have different visa-access profiles.
Passport Index lists Singapore with access to 140 visa-free destinations and 35 destinations offering visa on arrival. Malaysia has 129 visa-free destinations and 46 destinations offering visa on arrival. Both therefore have a total mobility score of 175.
The Malaysian Immigration Department said the country's passport holders have access to 175 destinations, comprising 129 visa-free destinations and 46 destinations with visa on arrival, while 23 destinations require a visa.
Passport Index separately lists eight destinations for Malaysia under electronic travel authorisation (eTA), while 23 require a visa.
The ranking represents a significant change from the 2025 Passport Index, when Malaysia was ranked third. The 2025 ranking had the UAE first with a score of 179, Singapore second with 175 and Spain third with 175. Malaysia was not in the top three at that time.
UAE Remains at the Top
The United Arab Emirates continues to hold the first position in the 2026 Passport Index Global Passport Power Rank.
The UAE has a mobility score of 182, including 138 visa-free destinations and 44 destinations offering visa on arrival. Passport Index lists 16 destinations where UAE passport holders require a visa.
The UAE's lead means Malaysian and Singaporean passport holders are seven destinations behind the current top-ranked passport according to the Passport Index methodology.
Spain ranks immediately behind Malaysia and Singapore with a mobility score of 174.
A large group of countries, including Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland, Italy, Switzerland, Greece, Portugal, Austria, Norway, Ireland and Japan, have a score of 173.
Malaysia Moves Above Major European Passports
The latest Passport Index ranking puts Malaysia ahead of several major European passports on its mobility score.
The United Kingdom, for example, has a score of 170 and is ranked eighth in the 2026 Passport Index. Canada has a score of 169, while Australia has 168. The United States has a mobility score of 167 and is ranked 10th in the ranking.
This does not mean Malaysian travellers can enter every destination without conditions. Passport strength rankings measure international mobility based primarily on visa requirements, and individual countries can still impose entry conditions such as length-of-stay limits, electronic travel authorisations, proof of funds, onward tickets or other requirements.
The Passport Index dashboard gives Malaysia a world reach of 88%, based on its 175-point mobility score.
Different Rankings Produce Different Results
The Malaysian passport's second-place position should not be confused with the Henley Passport Index, another widely cited global passport ranking that uses a different methodology and dataset.
The July 2026 Henley Passport Index placed Malaysia seventh globally, with access to 183 destinations without a prior visa. Singapore was first with 192 destinations, while Japan, South Korea and the UAE shared second place with 188.
That difference is important because passport rankings are not universal league tables. Each index can count travel privileges differently and use different definitions for visa-free access, visa on arrival and other forms of facilitated entry.
Therefore, saying Malaysia has the world's second-most-powerful passport in 2026 is accurate according to the Passport Index Global Ranking 2026, but it should not be presented as Malaysia being second in every passport ranking.
A Stronger Position for Malaysian Travellers
The improvement nevertheless represents a notable increase in Malaysia's position within the Passport Index.
The country's score of 175 places it just seven points behind the UAE and one point ahead of Spain. Malaysia also remains one of the strongest passports in Asia and Southeast Asia under the Passport Index methodology.
For Malaysian citizens, greater visa-free and visa-on-arrival access can reduce the administrative requirements associated with international travel. It can also make short-term tourism and business travel easier to plan, although travellers remain subject to the immigration rules of each destination.
The ranking comes as Malaysia has continued to strengthen its international travel documentation. The country launched a new 10-year Malaysian international passport in June 2026, with updated security features and design elements. Malaysian media reported that the new document includes enhanced security features and UV-visible landmark designs.
The latest ranking therefore puts Malaysia's passport firmly among the world's most mobile travel documents, while also highlighting how rapidly positions can change as countries alter their visa arrangements.
For the 2026 Passport Index, Malaysia now sits alongside Singapore in second place, behind the UAE and ahead of Spain and a broad group of European countries.
