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

Among hurdles facing those who would like to build new affordable communities is a mountain of red tape dictating what and where new properties can be built. —Jeffrey Steele, Forbes.com, 3 July 2025

The 24-page letter included calls to cut red tape to boost in-state oil production and streamlining efforts to enhance imports of crude from foreign countries. —Rob Nikolewski, Mercury News, 2 July 2025

Musk's views suggest: On Regulation: Reduce red tape to unleash innovation, particularly in biotech, AI, crypto, and space. —James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 July 2025

The House version of the BBB, which passed in May, directly cuts $128 billion in state funding for SNAP, and could potentially trim another $92 billion through the implementation of red tape and work requirements that would knock people out of eligibility. —Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 25 June 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