red tape

noun

Etymology: Alluding to the former practice of binding government documents in red-colored tape. First use appears c. 1658 in the publication Public Intelligencer. See cite below.

1. The binding tape once used for holding important documents together.

   “The use of red tape for tying up papers is of considerable antiquity. An advertisement in the Public Intelligencer, December 6, 1658, offers the reward for a restoration of a 'A little bundle of papers tied with a red tape, were lost on Friday last was a sevennight, between Worcester House and Lincoln's Inn.”

   “At twilight in the summer there is never anybody to fear—man, woman, or cat—in the chambers and at that hour the mice come out. They do not eat parchment or foolscap or red tape, but they eat the luncheon crumbs.”

2. Time-consuming regulations or bureaucratic procedures.

   “All the red tape and paperwork that goes on there prevents any progress.”

   “I've got to meet you by tomorrow noon / And cut through all this red tape / At a bar called O'Malley's / Where we'll plan our escape”