| Next | Section menu | Main menu | Previous |

Decline and fall

Leo Mirani: senior Britain correspondent, The Economist

The once-mighty British passport will lose even more of its power

BETWEEN 2013 and 2015 the British passport—in its burgundy-covered EU-member
incarnation—was the most powerful in the world, according to an index compiled
annually by Henley & Partners, a firm that helps rich customers acquire a new
nationality. This was because it allowed its lucky holders visa-free access to more places
than any other country’s passport. In 2016 it dropped from first to third position, and
has since slid further. In 2020—the year it reverted to its traditional blue cover—it fell
to seventh. In 2021 this gentle decline in its power will become a plunge.

The biggest reason is Brexit (which was also one of the reasons for the change in colour).
Britain has enjoyed many of the privileges of an EU member state during its post-Brexit
transition period, which ends on December 31st 2020. Britons will not require visas to
visit the 27 remaining member states after that, but they will lose the right to live, work
or study there, and will face limits on how long they can stay without paperwork. They
will have to fill in a form and pay a small fee once the EU puts in place its American-style