Topical Talk

How powerful is your passport?

Examine the world's strongest passports.

Collage of pages from the “How powerful is your passport?” teaching resource showing the cover and lesson plan

Published 07 November 2025

About this lesson

In 2025, the European Union introduced a digital tracking system for visitors, similar to a programme already in use in the United States. Passport stamps are being replaced by digital scans of fingerprints and faces.

At the same time, the US passport has dropped to a record low in the Henley Passport Index, with Americans losing visa-free access to countries such as Brazil and China.

What makes some passports more powerful than others? And how does this influence where people can travel?

Use this lesson to help students:

  • Compare the travel freedoms of citizens from different countries
  • Examine why some passports grant more freedom than others
  • Debate the impact of passport power on people’s lives and opportunities

Skills and knowledge

  • Listening

    Step 6: Note-taking
    I record important information
    Did you make notes on the four areas that impact how powerful a passport is?

    Step 9: Summarising
    I rephrase or summarise what I learnt
    Did you summarise your groups discussion on the challenge cards?

    Step 12: Comparing views
    I compare different points of view
    Did you compare different points of view when you discussed the challenge cards?

  • Knowledge

    I know that the amount of power a passport can have differs from country to country

    What is one of the factors that can make a passport more or less powerful?

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