TEHRAN – The Iranian passport is ranked 89th out of 193 countries with visa-free visits to 11 countries available to passport holders, according to Passport Index 2023.

The total score for each country comprises the number of destinations for which no visa is required under the index standards, including passport validity, duration, vaccination, traveling purposes, and other criteria.

Armenia, Dominican Republic, Georgia, Haiti, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Micronesia, Suriname, Turkey, and Venezuela are the countries that Iranian passport holders can travel to without obtaining a visa for 14 to 90 days. This period varies depending on the conditions of the destination countries.

There are 145 destinations for which an Iranian passport holder requires obtaining a visa before traveling.

There are currently eTA destinations and 38 visa-on-arrival countries that include Azerbaijan, Bolivia, Burundi, Cambodia, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Lebanon, Lesotho, Morocco, Madagascar, Nepal, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and Qatar.

The index has considered 193 United Nations member countries and six territories (ROC Taiwan, Macao (SAR China), Hong Kong (SAR China)Kosovo, Palestinian Territory, and the Vatican) for a total of 199 passports.

Invented and empowered by Arton Capital, Passport Index is the only real-time global ranking of the world’s passports, updated as frequently as new visa waivers and changes are implemented.

Tourism prospects

Iran witnessed the revival of the tourism industry in two consecutive years. The country achieved 39 percent year-on-year growth in 2020 when the total expenditure by foreign tourists hit $6.2 billion, according to a recent report by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC).

Although Iran’s tourism industry faced a 45% drop in its share of the GDP in 2020, the share of this industry in the economy experienced a 40% jump in 2021.

Based on the WTTC report, the share of the tourism industry in the total economy of the Islamic Republic in 2022 also increased by 39.2 percent and reached 4.6 percent of its total economy.

Moreover, the council’s statistics show that foreign tourists spent 6.2 billion dollars in Iran in 2022, which is a 73.5% increase compared to the year before.

Of the total number of foreign tourists who entered the country in 2022, 55% were Iraqi nationals as well as tourists from the Republic of Azerbaijan and Turkey each with 6%, Pakistan with 5%, and Kuwait with 2% were in the next ranks, respectively.

Iran’s tourism suffers from strict sanctions imposed by the Western world. For instance, there have been limitations on financial transactions, making it more challenging for foreign tourists to access certain services. The sanctions have also resulted in restrictions on international flights and reduced connectivity.

Despite the sanctions, Iran still welcomes tourists from around the world who are drawn to its rich cultural and historical heritage, ancient sites, vibrant cities, and beautiful landscapes. Moreover, Iranian authorities have been making efforts to promote tourism and improve infrastructure to attract more international visitors.

AFM