British passports to become Navy blue when Britain leaves European Union in March 2019.  The blue cover is a return to the original appearance of the British passport, with the colour first used in 1921.

According to UK Home Office..

• The New blue and gold passports will be issued from October 2019
• After the UK leaves the EU, burgundy passports will continue to be issued but with no reference to the European Union.
• The new, unique blue passport will be one of the most secure travel documents in the world, with a raft of new and updated security features and technologies to protect against fraud and forgery.

Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis said:

Leaving the EU gives us a unique opportunity to restore our national identity and forge a new path for ourselves in the world. That is why I am delighted to announce that the British passport will be returning to the iconic blue and gold design after we have left the European Union in 2019. It will also be one of the most secure travel documents in the world, with a raft of new security measures to protect against fraud and forgery.

History

1414 – The earliest recorded British passport can be traced back to documents known as safe conducts. These appeared in an Act of Parliament under the reign of Henry V.

1540 – The Privy Council, which advises the monarch, granted passports from at least 1540.

1641 – The oldest passport still in existence was issued on 18 June 1641 and signed by Charles I.

1778 – Until 1778 passports were written in English and Latin. After this date, they were issued in French which was the language of diplomacy at the time.

1794 – All passports began to be issued by the Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, who we would now call the Foreign Secretary. Previously all passports would have been issued and signed by the King and Queen.

1915 – The first modern-style British passports, including a photograph and signature were first issued. They were made of a single piece of paper that folded out and sat between cardboard covers.

1921 – The first blue passport in the format of a book was issued in 1921, it had 32 pages and was written in French.

1947 – The final passports issued bearing the signature of the Foreign Secretary were issued.

1968 – UK passports began to be issued with validity for ten years, double the previous validity.

1972 – The first security feature was introduced to the passport – a special watermark. Laminated photographs would follow in 1975 and further security features in the 1980s.

1988 – The first burgundy coloured machine-readable passports were issued in the UK following the common format introduced by the European Economic Community.

1998 – The first digital UK passport was introduced which included a digital image of the photograph and signature.

2006 – The first biometric passports were issued with an electronic chip featuring the holder’s data.

2008 – The first e-Passport gates were introduced in the UK. There are now around 240 ePassport Gates operational, covering 21 air and rail terminals, helping to speed up arrivals and improve border security.

2016 – The passport renewal process went entirely online for those aged 26 and over.

2017 – We recently announced that all those over the age of 16 can now renew their passport online.

2019 – The new blue passport will be phased in from October 2019, in line with the new passport contract.