Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.
South Korea has third most powerful passport
South Korean passport holders can travel freely to 188 countries and territories. Gettyimagesbank
By Jung Min-ho
By Jung Min-ho
South Korea has the world's third most powerful passport, according to the latest study by law firm Henley & Partners.
The 2019 Henley Passport Index
, which ranks countries based on their freedom of access to other countries, shows that South Korean passport holders ― along with German and Finnish passport holders ― can travel freely to 188 jurisdictions around the world without a prior visa.
Only Singaporean and Japanese passports offer visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to more destinations (190).
Passports of Denmark, Italy and Luxembourg are tied for sixth (187).
Afghanistan (25) is ranked at the bottom of the spectrum, with Iraq (27), Syria (29) and Somalia (31) just ahead.
Top
1. Singapore, Japan (190)
2. South Korea, Germany, Finland (188)
3. Italy, Denmark, Luxembourg (187)
4. France, Spain, Sweden (186)
5. Austria, Netherlands, Portugal (185)
Bottom
1. Afghanistan (25)
2. Iraq (27)
3. Syria (29)
4. Somalia, Pakistan (31)
5. Yemen (33)