It is a bitter sweet moment for Kiwi travellers as the New Zealand passport takes the top spot in the world's power rankings. The black book of NZ travel has been trending upwards in the index tables for years, finally knocking Japan from joint top position.
The index which compares the access granted by the passports of 193 United Nations member countries deemed the Kiwi passport to be the world's "most powerful". But what does this label mean during a global pandemic?
The Coronaviurs pandemic which has caused a shakeup in visa free travel has also meant that New Zealand has visa-free access to fewer countries than before. Albeit, Kiwi passport holders have not been affected as badly by travel restrictions as other nationalities.
Following Australia's extending of quarantine free travel to New Zealand passport holders – there are now 129 countries offering visa-free access. This is up 80 countries from the height of the pandemic crisis in six months ago. However, it represents a decrease of 40 places offering restriction free travel to New Zealanders in 2019.
Japan slips to second place, alongside joint entries Germany, Austria, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Ireland, South Korea and Australia.
