The idea of a passport has existed since people began to travel from one country to another. In the United Kingdom, the origin of the passport is the ‘Safe Conduct’, which was at first little more than a note signed by the king or queen asking that the person who held it be allowed to travel freely. Safe Conducts were issued to people of all nationalities and were mentioned in an Act of Parliament in the reign of King Henry V in 1414.
The Privy Council probably granted the first passports. We can see from the Council Register that it granted them between 1540 and 1685.
The earliest passport still in existence was granted in 1641 and was signed by King Charles I.
Between 1644 and 1649, the two Houses of Parliament also granted passports. An order to the House of Commons dated 14 April 1649 stated that no one should be granted a ‘Pass’ to ‘go beyond the seas’ until they had promised they would not ‘act, be aiding, assisting, advising or counselling against the Commonwealth’.
At first all British passports were signed by the king or queen. This changed during the reign of King Charles II (1660-1685), when a second type of passport was introduced. It was still issued in the King’s name but was signed by the Secretary of State.
In 1794, the system was changed so that all passports were granted by the Secretary of State, as they are today. We still have records of all passports that have been issued since 1794.
The earliest passports or ‘Safe Conducts’ were granted to people of all nationalities. In fact, they were given free to foreign nationals but British subjects had to pay for them!
In 1858, UK passports became documents of national identity, issued only to United Kingdom nationals.
The language of British passports has changed throughout history to reflect the culture and politics of the times.
24-hour Passport Adviceline: 0300 222 0000 (see terms and conditions). Calls made to 0300 numbers from landlines and mobile phones are charged to customers at their network provider's national rate. Live operators are available to assist with your enquiry 24 hours a day.
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