Your records certainly can affect you getting a passport. Depending on your criminal past, you may be banned from getting a passport. Similarly, some countries

Your records certainly can affect you getting a passport. Depending on your criminal past, you may be banned from getting a passport. Similarly, some countries (Canada comes to mind) will ban you from entering the country for things as small as running a stop sign while driving. You can also be banned from getting a passport if you are behind on your taxes or child support payments. As for getting on a plane, all of the above apply too, as well as the fact that you can be barred from flying simply by having a certain last name. Your personal records also affect things like how easy it is for you to get through customs and airport security. Global Entry/TSA PreCheck, for example, will be completely off-limits to you if you have 'questionable' travel records in your past. Pretending the US/EU doesn't already have the Chinese social credit system in place is sticking your head in the sand. All China has done is formalize it.