Page 2 - Passports

Pakistani passport ranks world's fourth weakest among 227 nations: Report

Pakistan has been ranked as having the fourth weakest passport in the world on an index compiled by a global citizenship and residence advisory company. Among 227 countries assessed on the index compiled by Henley & Partners, the country stands at the 100th position, which has been determined based on the number of destinations Pakistani residents can visit without needing a visa. Earlier this year, the nation of over 220 million was listed among the five countries with the lowest-ranked passports by the London-based advisory firm. Pakistanis had access to 35 countries with an on-arrival visa facility until January this year, which has now come down to 33, Geo News reported. Singapore leads the index with the most-coveted passport in the world, pushing Japan, which had topped the list for the last five years, to the third position shared with South Korea, Austria, Finland, France, Luxembourg and Sweden, granting their citizens access to 189 destinations without a prior visa, it ...

UK rolls out first passports with title 'His Majesty King Charles III'

For the first time in 70 years, British passports bearing the title of His Majesty will start being issued this week in the name of King Charles III. UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman unveiled the new design update on Tuesday evening which changes the passport salutation from Her Majesty following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September last year. As is customary, the 74-year-old King himself does not carry a passport as it is a document issued in his name. For 70 years, Her Majesty has appeared on British passports and many of us will not remember a time when she did not feature. Today marks a significant moment in UK history, as the first British passports since 1952 start featuring the title of His Majesty, the King, said Braverman. As HM Passport Office enters a new era in its history, it is delivering an exceptional service and I am extremely grateful for their outstanding accomplishments and the unwavering dedication of the whole team to meet the needs of the British ...

1.6 mn Indians renounced citizenship in last 10 yrs, 70K gave up passports

90% of passports were surrendered in just eight states, with Goa topping the list

India, Fiji sign MoU on visa exemption for official passport holders

India and Fiji on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports.External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka witnessed the MoU exchange.Jaishankar on the occasion said: "I just signed and exchanged the visa waiver agreement. It will be helpful in encouraging greater travel between our two countries."Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka called the MoU exchange a landmark achievement and said positive discussions were held today to further advance mutual cooperation in key areas of development notably in health and education."On behalf of the government of Fiji, I thank the government of India for realising this important cooperation. I'm confident that we will witness many more such initiatives unfolding through the deepening of our cooperation," Rabuka said.As a result of the visa exemption, diplomatic and official passport holders in India and Fiji will now be able to enter, ...

Chinese govt to start issuing new passports as Covid-19 curbs ease

The Chinese government says it will start issuing new passports as it dismantles anti-virus travel barriers, setting up a potential flood of millions of tourists out of China for next month's Lunar New Year holiday. That raises the possibility of an influx of free-spending Chinese visitors to revenue-starved destinations in Asia and Europe in what usually is the country's busiest travel season. But it also presents a danger, as tourists might spread COVID-19 as infections surge in China. China stopped issuing passports at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 as part of the world's strictest anti-virus controls and tried to block students, businesspeople and other travellers from going abroad. Tourist travel into China was shut down. Businesspeople and others who were allowed in were quarantined for up to one week. Tuesday's announcement adds to abrupt changes that roll back a "zero-COVID" strategy that confined millions of families to their homes. It kept infection rates

Want to change your passport photo online? Check instructions, details

To change the photo in the passport, you have to apply for a re-issue of the passport

TMS Ep263: Fuel price, privatisation, logistics stocks, Henley Passport

Why are fuel prices at pumps not going down? Is the govt going slow on privatisation? Is it a good time to buy logistics stocks? What is the Henley Passport Index? All answers here

What is the Henley Passport Index?

Every year, London-based immigration consultancy 'Henley & Partners' comes out with a ranking of 199 passports. It is called the Henley Passport Index. Find out about it in this segment

Passports of tomorrow will be virtual

Experts feel that a physical document may not even be required in the future

Here are the world's most (and least) powerful passports in 2022

Japan, Singapore and South Korea have the most powerful passports as the world continues to recover from Covid-19, reversing pre-pandemic rankings that were dominated by European nations

'Govt to ensure e-passport's data protection with multi-layered security'

The data of the soon-to-be launched e-passport will protected through multi-layered cyber security features, the government has assured the Lok Sabha

Nepal starts issuing e-passports, to replace machine-readable passports

The Department of Passports plans to issue e-passports in a full manner within three weeks

Vaccine passports ditched in UK's new plan to manage Covid-19 pandemic

Health Minister Sajid Javid said he did not anticipate more lockdowns and that the vaccine passports would not be introduced in England, as the government depends instead on vaccines and testing

Will England's NHS vaccine passports be used beyond international travel?

England's NHS vaccine passport has arrived, and with it the promise of a return to international travel unencumbered by swab tests or lengthy periods of quarantine

OCI card holders no longer required to carry old passports for India travel

People of Indian origin and Indian diaspora having overseas citizens of India (OCI) card are now not required to carry their old, expired passports for travel to India, as required earlier

Chip-enabled passports will boost security of travel documents: Jaishankar

Jaishankar said his ministry is working with Indian Security Press, Nashik and National Informatics Centre for chip-enabled e-passports with advanced security features

India announces relief for OCI card holders who renewed their passports

In the last several months, Indian diplomatic missions and eminent Indian-Americans were flooded with such complaints

People now get passports issued within 11 days, govt informs Lok Sabha

Passports under the 'tatkal' category are issued within a days's time

Soon, your passport may not serve as a valid address proof

External Affairs Ministry has decided not to print the last page of the travel document with the address of the holder.

Watch: Modi says women free to retain maiden name on passport post-marriage

Now, it will not be necessary for a woman to give the certificate of her marriage or divorce