Antigua and Barbuda ranks fourth as Barbados tops Caribbean passport rankings
Antigua and Barbuda placed fourth among Caribbean nations on the 2026 Henley Passport Index, which ranks global passports by the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa.
The index, compiled using exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association, highlights significant differences in travel freedom across the region, with both OECS and non-OECS countries represented among the top performers.
Top 10 Caribbean passports on the Henley Passport Index 2026
- Barbados
The strongest passport in the Caribbean, leading the region in visa-free and visa-on-arrival access. - The Bahamas
Ranked second regionally, closely following Barbados in global mobility. - Saint Kitts and Nevis (OECS)
The highest-ranked OECS member state on the index. - Antigua and Barbuda (OECS)
Positioned among the region’s leaders, ahead of several larger Caribbean states. - Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (OECS)
Continues to perform strongly in global travel access. - Saint Lucia (OECS)
Maintains solid mid-tier Caribbean mobility. - Grenada (OECS)
Ranked just below Saint Lucia, reflecting similar visa-free access levels. - Dominica (OECS)
Places eighth regionally, ahead of several non-OECS countries. - Trinidad and Tobago
Falls outside the OECS but remains within the Caribbean top 10. - Jamaica
Rounds out the top 10, with fewer visa-free destinations than Eastern Caribbean peers.
Countries such as Guyana, Suriname, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Haiti ranked below the Caribbean top 10, with Haiti remaining the region’s most restricted passport in terms of global mobility.
The 2026 Henley Passport Index marks two decades since the ranking was introduced and underscores widening disparities in global travel access. While some Caribbean states continue to benefit from extensive visa-waiver agreements, others remain constrained by limited diplomatic reach and reciprocal access.
The rankings reinforce the OECS’ comparatively strong showing, with six of its member states appearing in the Caribbean’s top 10 — a notable concentration for a sub-regional bloc of small island states.
Caribbean passports continued to show a wide range of global travel freedom in the newly released 2026 Henley Passport Index, with Barbados and The Bahamas topping the region in visa-free access and several Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) states ranking strongly among their peers.
The annual index, which ranks the world’s passports by the number of destinations their holders can enter without a prior visa using exclusive Timatic data from the International Air Transport Association, shows a clear hierarchy among Caribbean nations based on global mobility.
In 2026, Barbados maintained its position as the Caribbean’s most powerful passport. Barbadian citizens enjoy visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to more destinations than holders of any other regional passport, placing them among the top-tier globally. The Bahamas followed closely, holding the second-strongest Caribbean ranking.
Among OECS members, Saint Kitts and Nevis and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines ranked next in strength, forming a mid-to-upper tier of Caribbean mobility. Antigua and Barbuda also placed strongly, followed by Saint Lucia, Grenada, and Dominica, which occupy middle positions relative to other Caribbean passports.
Smaller jurisdictions such as Montserrat, a British Overseas Territory, appeared toward the lower end of the OECS grouping in terms of visa-free access, reflecting its distinct international travel status.
Several Caribbean countries outside the OECS ranked below these leaders in global mobility. Jamaica, Guyana, Suriname, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Haiti all registered fewer visa-free destinations on the 2026 index, with Haiti’s passport among the most restricted in the region.
The Henley Passport Index highlights differences in global mobility that mirror broader geopolitical and economic divides. While Caribbean nations vary widely in the strength of their passports, those with greater access tend to benefit from broader diplomatic networks and reciprocal visa arrangements. Conversely, nations with more limited access face barriers that affect ease of travel for business, education, and tourism.
The latest rankings underscore the continuing importance of passport power as a measure of international mobility, a factor that increasingly shapes personal and economic opportunity in a world where visa policies remain uneven.
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And the only place we can go a Barbuda
What’s wrong with Barbuda?
Not any more
No doubt our passport is right up there. That is why it is in demand in the Citizenship By Investment world. Locals just can’t get US visas with it right now. What use is a top notch passport with a pad lock on it?
They s is just Gaston using Ron saunders advise to desensitize us about the visa cancellation predicament for Antiguans, they are trying to create feel good national sentiment.
@ Audley Phillip
Gaston is the only person that makes sense to. I think he should listen to people like you some more
The contributors have plainly missed the point of the article. Nobody is talking about traveling to America. The point is that passports allow you to access multiple countries without having to obtain a visa first. We’ve always required a US visa, thus the criticisms don’t apply there.
If Gaston Browne stays as our Prime Minister, the rating and value of the Antiguan passport will continue to plummet like an out of control asteroid, especially after the issues with our CBI programme with the European Union 🇪🇺 and the acceptance by Browne of the refugees and deportees by the USA 🇺🇸
However, there will be light at the end of the tunnel when he’s voted 🗳 out at the next General Election.
ANTIGUANS CAN’T WAIT …
Then watch the Antiguan passport regain its worldwide prominence and recognition once again.
If the PM had any integrity about him, and love for Antigua & Barbuda 🇦🇬 he’d step down immediately and allow Chet Greene to take the ABLP reigns in the interim.
COME ON BROWNE, DO THE RIGHT THING…
What’s wrong with Barbuda? Well, No Antiguan is allowed to purchase a piece of land over there, but all Barbudans have fully rights to do it in Antigua.
Based on the Henley report, the top 10 in the Caribbean is incorrect. After Barbados, it is St. Vincent followed by St. Kitts then Antigua.
@Fed up Citizen 🤣🤣🤣🤣😭😭😄😄😄
And that’s the point, that’s the high Standards Antiguan’s have set for themselves for decades now. A carribean moral concept.
So we are where we should be, or even above the Bahamas and st kitts if it was about beauty and the moral soul of our people.
Barbados is very desirable because of their strong economic and political connections to the UK. So let’s look at who our passport is desirable to.
The point is also, is that we cannot have GB further ruin that good name Antiguan’s have set for themselves.
This Visa thing is not good, period, and our passport is only valuable still because of the CIP. Remember, I am not talking about visiting, I’m talking about becoming a resident of another country.
Look at everything in its full context,because, if our CIP get tightened to the point where the US wants it, not too many people ordinary would want Antigua’s passport, because lets me truthful, 90% of them don’t even want live here.
GB knows that, and the money is so damn good, that he can’t see pass that and see the security issues.
This man is blinded by money.
Barbados do not have CIP, but they are number one, go figure.
One of the reasons rich people are investing in the Antigua CIP as well, it’s not too difficult to get the so-called passport through this program, plus Antigua government waved the 5.7% property/business investment for none residents, so if you are buying property in Antigua anyway, why not just get in the CIP, become a resident immediately, and save that 5.7%.?
Smart business strategy to me.
Remember, GB just passed the 30 day residency just recently, which wasn’t in place from the inception of the program, so any crook didn’t even have to live in Antigua to get a so-called golden passport.
Think people, think.
Look at things in the full picture..but these articles won’t do that, because they are designed as a sales pitch, and hide the fine print.
Henley Is an Antigua and Barbuda government CIP agent.
That’s their business. CIP passports.
It’s like Trump who had a plaque in the lobby of his golf course clubrooms They had the highest rating.
Turns out Trump is part owner of the magazine doing the rating
Better give us a good rating or all your CiP work with Antigua snd zBarbuda gone a gwassa
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