red tape

noun

: official routine or procedure marked by excessive complexity which results in delay or inaction

bureaucratic red tape

… enterprisers that show how people across the Nation are coping (or not coping) with such problems as unemployment, the budget deficit and Government red tape.

—John Weisman

… pompous officials (often lowly clerks) in love with red tape who delight in obstructing the expedition of what should be simple procedures.

—Norman W. Schur

Initial plans became irretrievably mired in the red tape of building permissions.

—Bella Pollen

Their plan is simple enough and none too glamorous: create a Web site to help people cut through red tape; i.e., pay for parking tickets and so on.

—Sarah Kerr

Examples of red tape in a Sentence

You would not believe the red tape involved in getting the required permits.

Recent Examples on the Web

But there’s also been some serious red tape to reverse. —Matthew J. Friedman, CNN, 21 Mar. 2025

Empowering our staff with the right tools will streamline regulatory processes for local businesses and cut red tape. —Miami Herald Staff, Miami Herald, 21 Mar. 2025

But the Trump administration has reiterated its determination to cut the size of government, both to reduce costs for taxpayers and to cut red tape. —Kate Plummer, Newsweek, 17 Mar. 2025

Our focus should be on ramping up domestic production and cutting the red tape holding back the industry. —Jim Constantopoulos, Boston Herald, 17 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

from the red tape formerly used to bind legal documents in England

First Known Use

1736, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for red tape

• agape
• escape
• landscape
• lenape
• reshape
• seascape
• soundscape
• ape
• cape
• crape
• crepe
• drape

Kids Definition

red tape

noun

: rules and regulations that waste people's time