Passports

Very few passports were issued before they became compulsory in 1915. Before then, they were mainly issued to businessmen, merchants or diplomats. There was no need to have a passport to emigrate to a British colony or territory, or to enter the USA. There were, however, restrictions on British subjects travelling abroad and licences to travel overseas had to be obtained until the eighteenth century.

Licences to pass beyond the seas can be found in E 157. There are registers of oaths of allegiance taken before departing, and registers of licences issued. The earliest records commence in 1573, but most survive between 1613 and 1635, with an odd register of 1677. There are also passes and warrants to go abroad in the State Paper, Books and Accounts series SP 25/111-116 covering 1650 to 1660 and the Entry Books in SP 44/334-413 covering 1674 to 1784. Another Entry Book of passes from 1748 to 1794 is FO 366/544. There are no indexes to these records.

We hold passport registers from 1795 to 1948 in the Foreign Office series FO 610. Entries are chronological and only show the date, number of the passport and the name of applicant. Early registers also give intended destination and the name of a referee. Indexes to these registers are in FO 611 covering the years 1851 to 1862 and 1874 to 1916. They record the name, number of passport and date of issue. Correspondence relating to passports can be found in FO 612. Up to 1905 it is chronological, with no name or subject index, but from 1906 you can use the Foreign Office card index, 1906-1920 as a means of reference. Those files that survive are in the Treaty Department records in FO 372. From 1921 surviving files are in FO 612/72-267.

There are also some records in various Foreign Office series of British passports issued abroad, mainly in European states but also in China and Mexico. They can be searched for on the catalogue.