In response to her being mentioned in an article in the Globe & Mail (major Canadian newspaper), Green Party leader Elizabeth May submitted the following letter, published February 14:
Acts of renunciation
Re Citizenship For Sale (letters – Feb. 12):
I am not a dual citizen. I am a Canadian citizen and have been since 1978. Any doubt about citizenship is resolved in swearing the oath to Her Majesty the Queen in becoming a Member of Parliament. The U.S. accepts such acts as renunciation, lest there be any doubt.
Elizabeth May, O.C., M.P., Sidney, B.C.
I have no idea why she cites the oath she made on taking her seat as an MP. The wording of that oath is substantially the same as the citizenship oath.
Oath on taking office as MP:
I, [name], do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors. So help me God.
Citizenship oath:
I swear (or affirm) that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen.
Thank you *so* much, Pacifica777 for the links and for providing those clauses in the law. I am very grateful!
“They pussy-foot around a few questions, this one particularly perturbing in that it’s leading to a lot of confusion:
16. I am a U.S. citizen living in Canada and was not aware that the U.S. wants me to file tax returns. Will the Agreement mean that I now have to pay U.S. tax?
The Agreement is strictly an information-sharing agreement and does not involve any new or higher taxes.
Unlike Canada, the U.S. taxes its citizens who reside in other countries on their worldwide income. The U.S. citizenship-based tax regime has been in place for many years and is not altered by the Agreement. For more information, please refer to the U.S. IRS Instructions for New Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures for Non-Resident, Non-Filer U.S. Taxpayers.
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/nnrsdnts/nhncdrprtng/fq-eng.html
I believe that the question asked for a yes or no answer.”
You do not cross USA border you do not need to file.
CRA (for Canadian at time) and Canadian courts will not enforce USA Tax laws.
http://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/7322/index.do
http://uniset.ca/other/cs6/68OR2d379.html
Blaze can confirmed that the lawyer giving symposium that Canada will not extradite Canadian or residnet
for failing to file.
The USA in the future may still nab at the border people with USA birth place or who have been registered as USA person for failing to pay taxes. They can do this in the future even without FATCA.
Schubert thread from 2 years ago
https://isaacbrocksociety.wordpress.com/2012/02/13/3200/
“Canadian citizens still protected from IRS tax collection and penalties, in Canada”
Please note no 30% withholding on USA assets, Green Card holder in Canada not effected. The Canadian government in effect will only tell the American if you can not hide USA indices and you are still a USA citizen. They do not really care that you file USA the exit taxes. If you do get a CLN you will probably get on IRS radar. But they can not do anything to you in Canada.
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/nnrsdnts/nhncdrprtng/ndvdls-eng.html
https://isaacbrocksociety.wordpress.com/2012/02/13/3200/
Canadian FATCA will not shut down recalitrant accounts
“2 Suspension of Rules Relating to Recalcitrant Accounts
.
The United States shall not require a Reporting Canadian Financial Institution to withhold tax under section 1471 or 1472 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code with respect to an account held by a recalcitrant account holder (as defined in section 1471 (d)(6)of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code), or to close such account, if the U.S.Competent Authority receives the information set forth
in sub paragraph 2(a) of Article 2 of this Agreement, subject to the provisions of Article 3
of this Agreement, with respect to such account”
page 14 http://www.fin.gc.ca/treaties-conventions/pdf/FATCA-eng.pdf
Existing account holder do no need to supply SSN
4) Notwithstanding paragraph 3 of this Article, with respect to each Reportable Account that
is maintained by a Reporting Financial Institution as of June 30, 2014,and subject to paragraph 4 of Article 6 of this Agreement, the Parties are not required to obtain and include in the exchanged information the
4. Canadian TIN or the U.S. TIN, as applicable, of any relevant person if such taxpayer identifying number is not in the records of the Reporting Financial Institution. In such a case, the Parties shall obtain and include in the exchanged information the date of birth of the relevant person, if the Reporting Financial Institution has such date of birth in its records
page 12 of Canada FATCA http://www.fin.gc.ca/treaties-conventions/pdf/FATCA-eng.pdf
“Blaze on February 11, 2014 at 1:25 pm said:
@George: I asked about extradition on Saturday. It’s not going to happen for failure to file with IRS.”
Reply ↓
http://maplesandbox.ca/2014/cra-now-works-for-irs/comment-page-1/#comments
What about permanent residents (landed immigrants).
…can someone ask on the 22nd if Canada will extradite “permanent residents” – those who haven’t gotten their Canadian Citizenship yet. That’s a different class all together from Canadian Citizens/duals.
I know this site is monitored, so forgive me if I feel a little bit like Anne Frank, having to hide my true identity from the snooping eyes of a malign imperialistic foreign power who is on the verge of compelling the police of my country enforce its laws upon me. Needless to say, Anne Frank is not my real name, but anonymity seems the counsel of prudence in these circumstances.
My suggestion to all and sundry who are impacted by FATCA and the proposed IGA that Canada is having shoved down its throat by its erstwhile ally is to prepare a simple signed statement recording (i) the date you became a Canadian citizen or swore an oath of allegiance to another country, etc; (ii) the fact of your intention to relinquish any claims to the dubious blessings/indelible curse of your US “birthright”; and (iii) for icing on the cake,print and sign under oath the Canadian citizenship oath quoted above and indicate you have done so just in case anyone takes the position that prior expatriation acts have been in any way deficient. You can have any lawyer friend of yours do that up a little fancy in the form of an affidavit that will look very official.
Be prepared to file copies of this statement before July 1 with any Canadian banks or insurance companies you deal with where you have the slightest doubt that they may have recorded evidence of your tainted birth. This all assumes you have crossed the bridge of becoming Canadian and have no intention of being coerced into filing FBAR’s or any other indicia of a citizenship you do not have. Feel free to complain to your MP’s, but I strongly doubt there is much to be done on the political front.
From The Green Party Finance Critic Erich Jacoby Hawkins:
“My impression was that she had renounced quite some time ago, but I could be wrong. Certainly she only uses Canadian citizenship; she doesn’t exercise any dual-citizen privileges (like having an American passport), etc. and as noted considers herself Canadian, not a dual citizen. (In addition to being an MP, she is also an Officer in the Order of Canada, which isn’t open to non-citizens). I don’t know if the US realizes she’s not a citizen anymore but she was in Washington last week on her Canadian passport, speaking to them as a Canadian legislator. Nevertheless, I don’t doubt the IRS might consider her a “US Person” under their own wide net – ditto her born-in-Canada daughter, etc.
Looking at something coming out next week, I think – I’ll be sure you get a copy as soon as it goes public.
Thank you for your input & persistent attention to this issue.”
Erich.