question: Why does Japan have the strongest passport?
comment: It's basically to do with what a country can gain from having another country's citizens visit them. Japanese people have a comparatively high level of income, so when they go on their travels they're likely to go with a higher budget and therefore put more money into the local economy. When people from Japan migrate to other countries, they're also likely to be going to do that legally and working in a reputable job, as well as doing it all on the correct visas and are unlikely to overstay. When you are from a country that has a much less powerful passport, it's more likely that your country is suffering from various socioeconomic issues or even war, which make it less probable that you will be travelling as a tourist and more likely that you are travelling to the other country with the intention of seeking a better life for yourself. If you look up the passport ranking index online, you'll see correlation between how powerful a country's passport is and how wealthy that country is. But again, general stability, peace and other factors are also taken into account.
passages: Visa requirements for Japanese citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states which are placed on citizens of Japan. As of 2 July 2019, Japanese citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 189 countries and territories, ranking the Japanese passport the strongest passport in the world in terms of travel freedom alongside Singapore according to the Henley Passport Index. Additionally, Arton Capital's Passport Index ranked the Japanese passport fourth in the world in terms of travel freedom, with a visa-free score of 164 (tied with Belgian, French, Greek, Irish, Maltese, Norwegian and United States passports), as of 28 March 2019.
   Japanese passport
  
  Section::::History.
  
  The first travel documents for overseas travel by Japanese citizens were introduced in 1866, near the end of the Tokugawa shogunate. These documents took the form of a stamped "letter of request" allowing Japanese citizens to travel overseas for business and educational purposes. The term "passport" was formally introduced into the Japanese language in 1878, and in 1900 the first regulations governing the usage of Japanese passports were introduced. The modern form of the Japanese passport first came about in 1926, and the first ICAO-compliant, machine-readable Japanese passports were introduced in 1992.
  
  Section::::Types of passports.
   BULLET::::- By convention, the Emperor and Empress of Japan do not hold a passport.
  
  BULLET::::- Emergency passport: Issued by Japanese diplomatic posts to Japanese nationals for the purpose of urgent overseas travel, valid for 1 year from date of issuance.
  
  BULLET::::- Travel Document for Return to Japan : Single-use travel document mainly intended for Japanese nationals to return to Japan, features a white cover with the Paulownia Government Seal of Japan. Invalidated immediately after return to Japan.
  
  All Japanese passports issued after 20 March 2006 are biometric passports.
   BULLET::::- Date of birth
  
  BULLET::::- Sex
  
  BULLET::::- Registered Domicile
  
  BULLET::::- Date of issue
  
  BULLET::::- Date of expiry
  
  BULLET::::- Issuing authority
  
  BULLET::::- Signature of bearer
  
  The information page ends with the Machine Readable Zone.
  
  Section::::Types of passports.:Passport note.
  
  The passports contain a note from the issuing country that is addressed to the authorities of all other countries, identifying the bearer as a citizen of that country and requesting that he or she be allowed to pass and be treated according to international norms. The note inside of Japanese passports states:
  
  In Japanese:
  
  In English:
  
  Section::::Types of passports.:Language.
   On 26 October 2004, New Zealand diplomatic posts stopped issuing manual passports and, on the same day, began issuing short-term machine-readable emergency travel documents for New Zealand citizens who need to travel urgently. One of the reasons for reducing the number of non-machine readable passports in circulation was to increase the security of New Zealand passports; another was that, starting on this day, New Zealanders travelling to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program were required to enter on a machine readable passport.
   In 1992, the Department of Internal Affairs started issuing machine-readable passports in New Zealand, whilst New Zealand overseas posts continued to issue manual passports. Since 24 February 1992, children's names have no longer been endorsed in the passports of their parents. In February 1997, the New Zealand High Commission in London began issuing machine readable passports.
   Japanese passports are entirely printed in both Japanese and English, except for the note of caution that is found at the end of the passport (e.g. on page 51 of the ten-year biometric ordinary passport), which is only printed in Japanese. This note contains information about what the bearer should know when encountering various situations in a foreign country.
   The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation plans to make the UAE passport one of the five strongest passports in the world by 2021. According to The Passport Index, this goal has been achieved as of December 2018, ranking the Emirati passport as the strongest passport in the world with a visa-free score of 170.
  
  Section::::History.
   5. Where visas are needed, or where passport holders have to get government-approved electronic visas (e-Visas) before departure, a score of 0 is given. If passport holders must get government approval before leaving in order to obtain a visa on arrival, this also scores 0.
  
  6. The total score for a particular passport is then assigned according to the conditions defined above.
  
  Section::::July 2019 results.
  
   Singapore takes the top spot in the Henley Passport Index in conjunction with Japan, offering its citizens visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to a record total of 189 destinations.
   BULLET::::- Kirgysztan: 1 month (visa on arrival)
  
  BULLET::::- Laos: 30 days (visa on arrival, US$35)
  
  BULLET::::- Lebanon: 15 days (visa on arrival, 25000LL)
  
  BULLET::::- Macau: 1 year
  
  BULLET::::- Malaysia: 3 months
  
  BULLET::::- Maldives: 30 days
  
  BULLET::::- Nepal: 60 days (visa on arrival)
  
  BULLET::::- Oman: 1 month (visa on arrival)
  
  BULLET::::- Philippines: 30 days
  
  BULLET::::- Qatar: 21 days (visa on arrival)
  
  BULLET::::- South Korea: 3 months
  
  BULLET::::- Singapore: 30 days
  
  BULLET::::- Sri Lanka: 30 days
  
  BULLET::::- Thailand: 30 days by air, 15 days by land/sea
  
  BULLET::::- Taiwan: 90 days
  
  BULLET::::- East Timor: 30 days (visa on arrival)
   Section::::Case studies.:United Arab Emirates.
  
  In 2017, The Passport Index was assigned to monitor the development of the newly launched UAE Passport Force Initiative that had the aim to position the Emirati passport on the list of the five most powerful passports in the world by 2021. By 31 October 2018, the Emirati passport had already reached fourth place. On 1 December 2018, the Emirati passport became the most powerful passport in the world, with access to 173 countries without obtaining a visa in advance .
  
  Section::::Background.
   Some countries limit the issuance of passports, where incoming and outgoing international travels are highly regulated, such as North Korea, where ordinary passports are the privilege of a very small number of people trusted by the government. Other countries put requirements on some citizens in order to be granted passports, such as Finland, where male citizens aged 18–30 years must prove that they have completed, or are exempt from, their obligatory military service to be granted an unrestricted passport; otherwise a passport is issued valid only until the end of their 28th year, to ensure that they return to carry out military service. Other countries with obligatory military service, such as South Korea and Syria, have similar requirements, e.g. South Korean passport and Syrian passport.
   BULLET::::- Poland (available since 28 August 2006): 140 PLN (€35) for adults, 70 PLN for children aged under 13, free for seniors 70+ years, valid 10 years (5 years for children aged below 13). Passports issued from 29 June 2009 include fingerprints of both index fingers.
  
  BULLET::::- Portugal (available since 31 July 2006 – special passport; 28 August 2006 – ordinary passport): €65 for all citizens valid for 5 years. All passports have 32 pages.
   BULLET::::- The market for second hand materials is still in its infancy, and currently not able to support the optimal re-use of the materials in a building. Also, much more standardization, at least at the level of components, will be needed to increase the re-use the materials in a building.
  
  BULLET::::- There is no standardization for material passports yet. Passports might therefore prove to have limited usefulness when ultimately needed, due to evolving requirements, or require additional investments during the life of the building to keep them up to market standard.
   Visa requirements for Singaporean citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states which are placed on citizens of Singapore. As of 2 July 2019, Singaporean citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 189 countries and territories, ranking the Singapore passport the most powerful in the world and in Asia (tied with the Japanese passport), as well as the most highly-ranked passport in Southeast Asia in terms of travel freedom, according to the Henley Passport Index.
   By 2003, only around 4% of all New Zealand passport holders still held a non-machine readable version.
   Singapore's passport is a favourite target for counterfeiters due to its relatively liberal visa requirements for Singaporean travellers and the tendency for immigration to clear Singaporean passport holders more quickly. The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority has thus adopted several measures to foil forgers, including adding digital photos and special ink since October 1999, and converting to a biometric passport from August 2006.
  
  Section::::History.
   Passport Index rankings are in real-time and continue to vary as new changes to visa agreements are made. For the most part, the Top 10 places have been occupied by European countries with the exception of Singapore.
  
  Between 2017 and 2018, at top of the list with a visa-free score of 165 were Singapore and Germany, while the United States of America, South Korea, France, Denmark and Sweden were among the 11 countries that shared the second spot with a score of 164. The UAE passport now takes first place with a visa-free score of 167.
  
  Section::::Case studies.
   Shops of participating companies are recognized with a sticker distributed from the prefectural government. The companies can display the sticker at their shops or in their advertisements. The prefectural government lists the companies in newspaper advertisements and public bulletins. 1,023 companies and 1,976 shops had participated at September 2009.
  
  Section::::Purpose.
   BULLET::::- Armenia: 21 days (visa on arrival)
  
  BULLET::::- Azerbaijan: 30 days (visa on arrival)
  
  BULLET::::- Bahrain: 90 days (visa on arrival 75 €)
  
  BULLET::::- Bangladesh: 15 days (visa on arrival)
  
  BULLET::::- Brunei: 90 days
  
  BULLET::::- Cambodia: 1 month (visa on arrival US$30)
  
  BULLET::::- Hong Kong: 3 months
  
  BULLET::::- Indonesia: 30 days (visa on arrival)
  
  BULLET::::- Iran: 15 days (visa on arrival - only in international airports)
  
  BULLET::::- Iraq: visa on arrival
  
  BULLET::::- Israel: 3 months
  
  BULLET::::- Japan: 90 days (extendable until 180 days)
  
  BULLET::::- Jordan: 1 month (visa on arrival, 10JOD)
  
  BULLET::::- Kuwait: 3 months (visa on arrival)
   In 2015, India issued about 12 million passports, a number exceeded only by China and United States. Approximately 65 million Indians held valid passports .
  
  Section::::History.
  
  Section::::History.:British Raj.
   All Singaporean passports are issued exclusively by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) of Singapore. Only Singaporean citizens can apply for this passport. They are normally valid for five years. The Singapore passport is ranked 1st as the most powerful passport in the world with visa-free or visa on arrival access to 189 countries and territories, in conjunction with the passport of Japan.
   BULLET::::- Finland (available since 21 August 2006): €53 (valid for up to 5 years). As of 29 June 2009, all newly issued passports contain fingerprints.
  
  BULLET::::- France (available since April 2006): €86 or €89 (depending whether applicant provides photographs), valid for 10 years. As of 16 June 2009, all newly issued passports contain fingerprints.
  
  BULLET::::- Germany (available since November 2005): ≤23 year old applicants (valid for 6 years) €37.50 and 24 years (valid 10 years) €59. Passports issued from 1 November 2007 onwards include fingerprints.
   In case of diplomatic and service passports, those are not formally valid for visits to Israel and Taiwan, since there are no formal diplomatic ties with those countries, requiring diplomats and servicemens to use regular passports and to obtain appropriate visa or entry clearance from the immigration authority of the destined countries.
   BULLET::::- Czech Republic (available since 1 September 2006): 600 CZK for adults (valid 10 years), CZK100 for children (valid 5 years). Passports contain fingerprints.
  
  BULLET::::- Denmark (available since 1 August 2006): DKK600 for adults (valid for 10 years), DKK115 for children (valid for 5 years) and DKK350 for over 65 (valid for 10 years). As of January 2012 all newly issued passports contain fingerprints.
  
  BULLET::::- Estonia (available since 22 May 2007): EEK450 (€28.76) (valid for 5 years). As of 29 June 2009, all newly issued passports contain fingerprints.
  