POLOKWANE – South Africa’s passport has fallen several places in a new global ranking, with holders now able to access fewer destinations without needing a traditional visa.

Passport Reports has ranked the South African passport 86th out of 199 passports this year, down from 79th in 2025. The ranking is based on the number of destinations South Africans can access without a traditional visa, and it places the country behind several other African nations.

The numbers behind the ranking

According to the latest data from Passport Reports, the South African passport has a Mobility Score of 108. This reflects the total number of destinations South Africans can access through some form of facilitated entry.

This means that while South Africans can travel to 108 destinations without applying for a traditional visa in advance, a visa is still required for 90 others.

A downward trend

The decline is part of a longer pattern. South Africa’s Mobility Score stood at 81 in 2020, then climbed \to 90 in 2021 and 108 in 2022, before peaking at 112 in 2023. Since then, the score has edged downward, reaching 108 in 2026.

The global ranking tells a similar story: from 56th in 2020, South Africa’s passport climbed to 84th in 2021 and 85th in 2022, 84th again in 2023, before slipping to 86th in 2026. The lower the rank number, the stronger the passport.

What the ranking actually means

A lower passport ranking does not necessarily mean South Africans cannot travel to a particular country.

The Passport Reports system groups several forms of facilitated entry into its Mobility Score:

• Visa-free means no visa is required for entry.
• A visa on arrival means the traveller obtains the visa after arriving at the destination rather than applying beforehand.
• An ETA is an electronic authorisation that must be obtained before travelling, even though a conventional visa is not required.

Travellers should therefore check the latest requirements with the relevant country’s authorities before booking a trip, as entry conditions can change.

What you can travel to without a visa

South Africans still enjoy visa-free access to popular destinations such as Namibia, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, and several other African countries, as well as parts of the Caribbean, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.

Click here to see more visa-free destinations.

However, travel to major destinations like the United States, United Kingdom, and the Schengen Area still requires a visa application.

The latest ranking places South Africa behind several other African passports, including Mauritius (ranked 54th globally) and Seychelles (ranked 46th), though it remains stronger than many others on the continent.