According to the Henley Passport Index for the third quarter of 2023, Malaysia’s passport has a visa-free score of 180, meaning that it provides visa-free access to 180 of 227 travel destinations worldwide.

Among the countries a Malaysian passport holder can access without a visa are France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Qatar, UAE and the United Kingdom.

Based on the historical data shared by Henley, the highest ranking that Malaysia’s passport achieved previously was eighth, in 2014.

The position for Malaysia’s passport declined in the following years, and it did not manage to reach the top 10 rank since.

However, its visa-free access has improved over the years. In 2021 and 2022, Malaysia’s passport ranked 13th and only gave visa-free access to 176 countries.

Singapore topped the list with a visa-free score of 192. Thailand and Indonesia were at 64th and 69th spot, respectively.

The index ranks all 199 passports of the world based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Authority (IATA), cross-checking each against all 227 travel destinations in the world, including those that do not issue their own passports.

For each travel destination that does not require a visa or can obtain an electronic travel authority (ETA) or visitor’s permit upon arrival, a passport’s mobility score increases by one.

However, destinations where visas are required, or in need of government approval for a visa on arrival, are not considered “visa-free” and do not contribute to the score.