This month, the Henley global passport index, which ranks the clout of nations’ citizenship, offered a quiet but telling signal about shifting global soft power. For the first time in two decades, the United States passport slipped out of the world’s top ten, and is now ranked twelfth—alongside Malaysia. The US economy is robust, its military reach unmatched, and its diplomacy visible from Gaza to the Indo-Pacific. Yet something deeper has changed—an erosion of the magnetism that once made US citizenship the world’s most powerful.
This decline follows the sharpest reversal in American immigration policy since the 1960s. The Trump administration’s harsh crackdown on illegal immigration was predictable, even popular, as Americans saw their borders dissolve into abstraction. But few anticipated the simultaneous tightening on legal immigration—particularly for highly educated professionals and students who have powered America’s innovation engine for generations.
For decades, the US has been a magnet for the world’s brightest—scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs—who built Silicon Valley, transformed academia, and fuelled its technological dominance. That open-door policy for skilled individuals not only defined American prosperity but also catalysed the “brain drain” from developing countries like India.
Now comes a major deviation. H-1B visas are scarcer, green-card backlogs longer, and post-graduate employment routes less welcoming. For a nation that built its global pre-eminence on attracting talent, this inward turn seems oddly self-defeating. The message to young innovators worldwide is unmistakable: you are no longer as welcome as before.
While the US withdraws, others have been stepping up. Australia and Canada have long used points-based systems to court skilled migrants, but the most nimble have been city-states and commercial entrepots like Singapore and the UAE. They have rolled out residency-track visas for start-up founders, researchers, and even bright master’s and PhD students, recognising that global competitiveness depends on human capital. Germany and Vietnam have joined this race, each unveiling ‘talent visas’ designed to attract a wide spectrum of professionals.
The most stunning development has been China’s K-visa for young innovators. For a nation with a huge population and strict immigration controls, this is a striking shift. Domestic resentment simmers among many, but Beijing’s logic is clear: in the innovation century, talent trumps political correctness.
India, meanwhile, stands at an inflection point. We are successfully leveraging the strength of our diaspora—attracting investment, expertise, and global networks. Yet, the same global race for minds increasingly targets Indians, admired worldwide for intelligence, STEM skills, diligence, and civic discipline. Our challenge is to retain, nurture and leverage our demographic advantage.
There are opportunities as well. A decade ago, a celebrated economist who would go on to win the Nobel Prize told me that India should “import a million brilliant minds”. At the time, it seemed outlandish. Why would the world’s most populous nation need to import talent? But perhaps that provocation carries wisdom. There is an essential difference between hordes of illegal immigrants seeking low end jobs and smaller, targeted numbers of highly talented, skilled individuals at the cutting edge of new knowledge and technologies.
The most successful nations, large or small, have always been open to infusing new energy and ideas. Economic strength, military might, and diplomatic reach are essential—but not sufficient. As this year’s passport rankings remind us, true prestige and influence lies not only in power but in attraction.
Nations confident enough to welcome excellence from everywhere will have an edge in this competitive era. America’s wobble offers a cautionary tale; and India’s rise presents an opportunity—to build a nation that is both proud of its roots and open to every bright mind that seeks to grow with it.
Baijayant ‘Jay’ Panda is National Vice President of the BJP and is an MP in the Lok Sabha.