Why a weak passport feels like getting punched in the gut 27 times
And a kick on the shin.
For people living in first-world countries, deciding to travel abroad is as casual as choosing where to eat for dinner. “Paris? Bali? Oh, let’s just do both!” Meanwhile, in the third world, it’s more like playing an extreme sport. Do you have the right documents? Enough funds? Oh, and don’t forget to pray that the visa officer is in a good mood.
When I was 25, I hadn’t been to a single country. Not because I didn’t want to—I was practically a professional daydreamer. I had visions of strolling through Kyoto’s temples, hiking the Canadian Rockies, and basking under Iceland’s northern lights. But for a young woman from the Philippines, travel wasn’t just about booking a ticket. It was a logistical maze, a financial headache, and a masterclass in patience.
It wasn’t until my mid-20s that I fully grasped the grim reality of what it means to hold a weak passport. Growing up, I thought passports were just boring little booklets you brought to airports. Turns out, they’re actually a global VIP pass—or, in my case, a “Please Wait While We Judge You” card. For some, travel is freedom. For others, it’s an obstacle course with no guarantee of a finish line.
What the World's Strongest Passports Unlock
Every year, the Henley Passport Index ranks passports based on how many destinations they open doors to without a visa (or with a visa-on-arrival). Spoiler: countries like mine never make the top of the list. Let’s take a look at the top 10 strongest passports as of 2025:
Singapore – 195 destinations
Japan – 193 destinations
France, Germany, Spain, Italy, South Korea, Finland – 192 destinations
Sweden, Austria, Denmark, Netherlands, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway – 191 destinations
Portugal, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Belgium, New Zealand – 190 destinations
Greece, Australia – 189 destinations
Malta, Canada, Poland – 188 destinations
Czechia – 187 destinations
Estonia, United States, Latvia, Hungary – 186 destinations
Lithuania, Slovenia, United Arab Emirates – 185 destinations
So, what does having one of these VIP passports mean? It means you can casually book a flight without checking 15 different embassy websites. It means immigration officers greet you with smiles, not skepticism. And it means you probably don’t know the soul-crushing pain of spending hours assembling a “visa application package.”
Where Does the Philippines Stand?
Now, let’s talk about my beloved Philippine passport. Ranked 75th in the world, it allows visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to a grand total of... 67 destinations. Most of these are Southeast Asian neighbors or tiny islands that don’t even need embassies.
For Filipinos, visiting most countries—like Japan—requires a Herculean effort. And the sad part is, we don’t even expect otherwise. We’ve accepted that this is our travel reality.
Emily vs. Emma
Let’s break down what it takes to visit Japan, comparing the experiences of Emily, a Filipino, and Emma, a citizen of a first-world country. Spoiler alert: Emma wins. Every time.
Step 1: Deciding to Go
Emily: Emily spots a seat sale to Tokyo and feels a rush of excitement. But then she hesitates. What if her visa gets denied? She can’t risk buying the ticket, no matter how cheap it is.
Emma: Emma sees the same sale, books the ticket, and texts her friends, “Tokyo, anyone?”
Step 2: The Visa Process
Emily: Emily begins the marathon:
Fill out a visa application form.
Get an ID photo taken (and retaken because the specs are weirdly specific).
Gather her Certificate of Employment, bank statements, hotel bookings, and a day-by-day itinerary.
Print everything. Twice.
She heads to a travel agency (a requirement for Japanese visas) and is promptly told her documents are incomplete. Great. Back to square one.
Emma: Visa? What visa? Emma doesn’t need one. She’s already deciding which ramen shop to visit first.
Step 3: Waiting
Emily: After resubmitting her application, Emily waits. Days feel like weeks. She checks her email obsessively, wondering if her travel dreams will end in rejection.
Emma: Emma has already made restaurant reservations and bought an outfit for cherry blossom season.
Step 4: Booking the Flight
Emily: Good news! Emily’s visa gets approved—for a single entry. By now, the cheap flight she saw is long gone. She ends up paying double, gritting her teeth while booking.
Emma: Emma has already set her Tokyo itinerary to the beat of her Spotify playlist.
Step 5: The Airport
Emily: At the airport, Emily faces another hurdle: immigration. She clutches her documents, ready to explain that she’s just a harmless tourist who definitely plans to come back home. She only breathes a sigh of relief after getting past the officer.
Emma: Emma smiles at the immigration officer, who barely glances at her passport before waving her through.
Travel is a Privilege
For people like Emma, the world is wide open. For people like Emily, it’s a bureaucratic minefield.
Having a strong passport is a privilege. It’s the privilege of being trusted at borders, of booking tickets without fear, and of traveling freely without a 10-step approval process.
For the rest of us, travel is a battle. But here’s the thing: even with all the obstacles, it’s worth it. Every visa granted, every border crossed, and every place visited is a reminder that we’re capable of overcoming the odds.
So, to all the Emilys out there: don’t stop. Keep applying, keep fighting, and keep dreaming. One day, we’ll get there, and it’ll be all the sweeter for it.