The UAE passport is currently ranked as the best passport in the world, with a total score of 110.50.
The ranking is determined not only by the number of countries that United Arab Emirates passport holders can visit without a visa but also by the country’s approach to international taxation laws, global perception, dual citizenship, and personal freedom, according to Nomad Passport Index Ranking.
Best passport in the world 2023
To calculate the travel score for the UAE, publicly available passport data and news sources were used to rank travel access. The travel score was calculated by adding up the number of visa-free, visa on arrival, and eTA countries that United Arab Emirates passport holders can enter.
According to the data, the UAE passport holders can enter 116 countries without a visa, 58 countries with a visa on arrival, and 7 electronic travel authorization (eTA) destinations. Thus, the Emirati passport holders can enter a total of 181 destinations without a visa or through a visa on arrival or via an eTA. There are also 69 additional destinations which UAE passport holders require a physical visa or an eVisa to enter.
Taxation in UAE
For the UAE taxation score calculation, data from tax vendors, news sources, and tax authorities were used. The scores ranged from 10 to 50, with countries that tax citizens regardless of their location assigned the lowest score of 10, and countries with zero tax assigned the highest score of 50. According to the data, United Arab Emirates has zero taxes, resulting in a taxation score of 50.
Perception
The World Happiness Report, the Human Development Index, and subjective factors from network experiences were used to calculate the perception score for UAE.
The scores ranged from 10 to 50, with the lowest score of 10 assigned to countries whose citizens are refused entry to many countries and encounter hostility, and the highest score of 50 assigned to countries ranked among the happiest in the world and whose citizens experience minimal hostility. Based on the data, the UAE citizens experience intermediate hostility, resulting in a perception score of 40.
Dual Citizenship in UAE
The ability to hold dual citizenship was assessed to calculate the Dual Citizenship score for United Arab Emirates.
The scores ranged from 10 to 50, with the lowest score of 10 assigned to countries that strictly forbid dual citizenship, and the highest score of 50 assigned to countries that freely allow dual citizenship.
Based on embassy data and experiences, UAE citizens are often allowed to hold other citizenships but with certain restrictions, resulting in a Dual Citizenship score of 30.
tanvir@dubainewsweek.com
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