This post appeared on the RenounceUScitizenship blog.
Responding to terrorism – A wonderful article
Opposite of Terror on.natgeo.com/14SMUnB – Orwellian acronym for “transportation security” doesn't protect from, but creates terror!—
U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 11, 2013
Does the obsession with “terror” actually create terror?
The article referenced in the above tweet is a “Must Read” for all. To whet your appetite it includes:
Cdn resident's #RRSP account frozen bc of self-identification as one of #americansabroad in Canada - isaacbrocksociety.ca/2013/05/27/tra… – Likely #FATCA—
U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 06, 2013
A comment at the Isaac Brock Society included the following:
On Oct. 18th, 2012 I applied at the Royal Bank to become a signature to my husbands direct investing account. The question of my birth place was on the application form and as always I advised I was born in the U.S. At the time I was unaware of FATCA.
During that meeting, via phone, I was advised by RBS Direct Investing that my RRSP account was frozen and I could no longer trade within that account. The individual I dealt with at RBC Direct Investing was a Senior Manager. My account would be frozen until such time as I completed a “w-9″ form which required a SSN which I have never had. I have made appts. twice at Toronto Consulate to apply for SSN but have cancelled as I am not sure it is the right move for me to make at this time.
I did write letters to the PM, Jim Flaherty and my MP….in fact, just mailed them yesterday regarding my situation and I did relay the issue with the Royal Bank.
My husband and I will be attending the meeting on June 15th ….bit of a distance for us but we will be there.
What about #FATCA impacts on resident EU citizens of dual US citizenship? @SophieintVeld drives home the question bit.ly/18zGj5t—
Marvin Van Horn (@FATCA_Fallout) May 30, 2013
This is excellent! Thanks to Just Me for tweeting the conference!
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.
Reports of #IRS abuse of #americansaborad isaacbrocksociety.ca/2013/05/25/rep… – Homelanders would not believe this was possible! Its a #FATCA – #FBAR 2—
U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) May 27, 2013
The following comes from a post at the Isaac Brock Society.
As I watch the IGA spectacle unfold, I have the feeling that other countries don’t understand citizenship-based taxation. They don’t understand that by employing citizenship-based taxation, they are really asking other countries to identify lawful residents of their countries, and help the U.S. collect tax from them. This tax collected as at the expense of the country where those US citizens reside. All penalties paid under the OVDP and OVDI penalty programs erode the tax base of the country where the U.S. citizen abroad resides. Because no other country (except Eritrea) imposes citizenship-based taxation, reciprocity (even if the U.S. could be trusted, which it clearly can’t) would not mean that the US would report on citizens of other countries. At best, the US would report on residents of other countries that have bank accounts in the US. The point is a simple one:
A FATCA IGA does not require the US to erode its own tax base in any significant way.
Why is there this imbalance? The answer is simple. Only the US employs citizenship-based taxation. The US employs citizenship-based taxation as a weapon against not US citizens abroad, but against the countries where they reside.
Therefore, at the end of the day, if the US is going to get “FATCA Co-operation” from the rest of the world, it must stop citizenship-based taxation.
Interestingly this necessity seems to have been recognized in an academic paper – FATCA: Toward a Multilateral Automatic Information Reporting Regime by Joanna Heiberg. I highly recommend this article.
She writes in part:
Future generations will visit the #PFIC memorial in Washington – a monument to the destruction of #americansabroad isaacbrocksociety.ca/2013/04/17/exc…—
U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) April 24, 2013
I have never met a Homelander who would believe the story referenced in this tweet.
Q. What do the U.S. and Eritra have in common?
A. They both terrorize their citizens abroad.
@USCitizenAbroad Answer must be Congressional ignorance of the facts. Any other reason is too terrible to contemplate.—
Peter Dahlen (@peterdahlen) March 02, 2013
@uscitizenabroad Don't know Nunes. @ACAVoice is doing great work educating (which is lobbying at its core) Congress. ow.ly/icT3U—
Peter Dahlen (@peterdahlen) March 02, 2013
This post is a “follow up” to an earlier post called: “Why are we so cruel to U.S. citizens living abroad.” That post also referenced the above Twitter Exchange. That post included the following poll:
The preceding twitter exchange identified at least part of the reason for citizenship-based taxation as “Congressional ignorance”. The exchange also referenced the need to get the message to the Ways and Means Committee. With the help of the advocacy of American Citizens Abroad and others Congress received many submissions on the topic of citizenship based taxation. Thanks to AbusedExpat for taking the time to transcribe excerpts from the submissions in comments starting here.
As Patrick Henry notes the comment from Jackie Bugnion of ACA rated a 10 on the “emotion scale” and was a true “Declaration of Independence” for Americans Abroad. Patrick Henry comments that:
Earlier this year I wrote that “Peaceful resistance to FATCA will result in a new financial order“. An article by Geoffrey York of the Globe and Mail suggests this may be starting to happen.
China leader's first trip highlights growing clout of BRICS nations soa.li/GBJC2iN – Anti #FATCA nations form political alliance—
U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) March 23, 2013
The article is well worth reading. Note the following commentary and excerpts:
On March 24, 2013 it was announced that Cyprus will indeed confiscate deposits in private bank accounts to save Cyprus. In other words, the saves will pay for the sins of the debtors.
Cyprus reaches last-minute deal but can’t save second-largest bank thestar.com/news/world/201… – One more attack on the savers—
U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) March 25, 2013
Making the virtue of “saving” pay for the sin of “borrowing”
Cyprus confiscates money in savings accounts – who could have known? sovereignman.com/finance/this-c…—
U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) March 18, 2013
Second Thoughts in Europe as Fear Spreads in Cyprus nyti.ms/15WtkcM—
U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) March 19, 2013
Confiscation of assets is a direct attack on the principle of saving!
If you haven’t heard by now, Cyprus has announced the direct confiscation of money in its citizens bank accounts. The announcement was made on a Saturday when the banks were closed. The banks remain closed for a bank “holiday” and the only issue is how and what percent of people’s “after tax” savings will be confiscated from them. As one commentator has suggested Cyprus appears to employing a (contextually) clever “divide and conquer” technique – turning citizens against each other. Those with fewer savings will have less stolen from them and those with more savings will have more stolen from them. What could be more just than that?
