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From what I understood passports were available but not compulsory until WW1. This is extracted from FMP's background info on their passport records:

Passports were not mandatory for British travellers until 1914. Until 1858 UK passports could be granted to people who were not British but who requested the protection of the UK whilst travelling; these passports were simply certificates requesting that foreign officials should allow the bearer to travel without hindrance.

Until the 17th century the Monarch had the prerogative right to control the movement of his subjects overseas and passport applications were rarely made.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, passports were issued more frequently
1846 that regulations relating to applications for passports were first formulated
During this period passports were issued to British-born subjects for a single journey and could be used for any subsequent journey with the condition that the passport was countersigned afresh by a Minister or Consul in the country of which the holder intended to visit.
The entries provide details of

the bearer of the passport
passport number,
the date the passport was issued
any observations that may have been noted during the application
It is estimated that around 360,000 applications are recorded between 1851 and 1903.

I also doubt very much whether he would have needed a passport.

Probably not. It was not really until the outbreak of WW1 that passports were commonly required for use by ordinary civilians.

As a member of a ships crew he would probably have had his seaman's paybook , "Ticket" or identity card

Found on Wikipedia

History

Safe Conduct documents, usually notes signed by the monarch, were issued to foreigners as well as English subjects in medieval times. They were first mentioned in an Act of Parliament, the Safe Conducts Act in 1414. Between 1540 and 1685, the Privy Council issued passports although they were still signed by the monarch until the reign of Charles II when the Secretary of State could sign them instead. The Secretary of State signed all passports in place of the monarch from 1794 onwards, at which time formal records started to be kept.[5]

Passports were written in Latin or English until 1772, when French was used instead. From about 1855 English was used, with some sections translated into French for many years.

About 1855 passports became a standard document issued solely to British nationals. They were a simple single-sheet paper document, and by 1914 included a photograph of the holder.

The British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914 was passed on the outbreak of the First World War. A new format was introduced in 1915: a single sheet folded into eight with a cardboard cover. It included a description of the holder as well as a photograph, and had to be renewed after two years.


Regards Vera

Thanks for that Vera.

Kathlyn

I would say yes ...all who went abroad must have had some form of passport.

Regards Vera

Would someone who joined as crew going on a ships voyage to India, need a passport in 1894?

Kathlyn