Are you a Canada-U.S. dual citizen? @cbcallinaday is following a new law that affects you: http://t.co/Gt1lfV3LuC
— Susan Burgess (@susanmburgess) August 15, 2014
*****
Friday August 15, 2014
The facts on FATCA
As of Canada Day, Canadian banks are required to start getting into compliance with a U.S. law called FATCA, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. It requires them to hand over the account information of clients with ties to the U.S., such as people with Canada-U.S. dual citizenship. That information goes to the Canada Revenue Agency, for release to U.S. tax authorities.
It’s a lot to absorb for dual citizens, so we’ve done several interviews this summer on the legislation and the arguments for and against it. And in case you missed any of them, you can get caught up by listening to a FATCA primer by a tax law expert, an interview with an Ottawa dual citizen who’s affected, a defence of the U.S. model of citizenship-based taxation, and our latest: the legal case against Canada’s acceptance of FATCA.
Are you affected by FATCA? Get in touch with us and tell us your story. We’ll continue to follow the issue in the months to come.
*****
The above paragraph links to Alan Neal’s radio interviews with Allison Christians, our own White Kat as well as Prof. Michael Kirsch and one of our lawyers, David Gruber.
The site is inviting comments on this story here. . No comments have been posted yet – time for Brocker SWAT! (See below — send to email allinaday@cbc.ca — not in Comments to the CBC article.)
****
Important NOTE (inserted here by Calgary411) re contacting CBC — not by comment at the story but by email:
I put my comments in comments at the CBC page and they are still in moderation (all day long). I finally figured out that really where they tell us to communicate our stories is to them by email to allinaday@cbc.ca, per:
Are you affected by FATCA? Get in touch with us* and tell us your story. We’ll continue to follow the issue in the months to come.
i.e., links to email address, allinaday@cbc.ca
THIS IS AN IMPORTANT OPPORTUNITY.
Thanks for posting, Tricia.
This is absolutely the kind of advocacy that could and should be ongoing in the Canadian media to inform *US Persons in Canada* as well as ALL Canadians.about what Canada has agreed to with the US by implementing the FATCA IGA to override Canadian law and how, especially, defined *US Persons in Canada* will be affected.
Salute to CBC “All In A Day” — it is your getting this story out and keeping it in the forefront that will make this extra-territorial overreach in Canada reality for ALL Canadians. Every Canadian needs to ask themselves if they could be among those not protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and other Canadian law.
This reality is a lot to absorb for not only for dual citizens but anyone else related to those persons with *US indicia* through family or business partnerships — and for ALL Canadians in how it affects this country’s very sovereignty.
Good to have a major news outlet chronicle FATCA and how it affects people as it steamrolls itself across the nation.
The story really needs to let people know that this is very close to the Jewish hiding from Nazi Germany in the 1940’s. People will do whatever it takes to stay clear of this absurd law to protect their families and business partners in Canada. It is terrible that in modern day times, something similar to the “Nazi” type control is aided and abetted by the Canadian government. This CLEARLY shows how much the Canadian government cares about the people that make up Canada. This is the worst thing I have ever seen done to innocent people in my life so far…..
The similarities are blatant, aren’t they Native Canadian, yet just because we are not being executed (yet) for being American, there are those who use that reason to deny the fact that there’s a similar level of persecution going on.
My wife & I, both in our 80s and born in US, came to Canada in 1960 and took CDN citizenship prior to 1973. It was, and has always been, our understanding that we relinquished our US citizenship on becoming Canadians. I now hear that the US has generously given us back our unrequested and unwanted US citizenship so that we have the privilege of being subject to US tax. Is my understanding correct? How can one determine if one is considered a US citizen? Thank you.
Are any Canadian banks releasing financial information to the CRA and through them to the IRS without informing the client(s)? Although we have not been formally asked about a US connection, it could have come up in conversation in the past prior to FATCA that one of us had a US connection which is then remembered by the bank and then acted upon.
Joe technically they do not need to notify you
If a bank has knowledge through by way of example a relationship manager they need to report
Sorry for the bad tithings
Ian the only absolute way to know your status is to apply for a certificate of loss of nationality through a consulate but they could in the end refuse it
If you naturalised in Canada with the intention to lose your nationality you likely lost it
But if you naturalised simply thinking you were going to lose it the. Uncle Sam. Gave you a present Back of the most valuable citizenship in the world and by the way you better be grateful
Its a crape shoot as to what the consulate will ask you
Ian. You relinquished your US citizenship. They did not give it back to you. IF you were to want it back, which I doubt, they would give it back if you were to apply. You do not have to do anything. You are no longer Americans. Don’t do anything silly to jeopardize that fact.
Ian, you can apply for and get a certificat of loss of nationality based on your relinquishment with intent way back when. There is no charge. It takes an appointment at a consulate and a long wait. See ‘relinquish if you can… ‘. under ‘ resources’ to the right of the IBS page.
It’s been 40 yrs. you’re probably good for another 40!
Consider a donation to ADCS to help others not as lucky as you. Cheers.
Great news coverage from CBC. My only complaint is, where were they (and other mainstream media) when the IGA was being debated in the House of Commons Finance Committee and when (long shot I admit, given Tory majority) enough public and media pressure might have made a difference in getting the thing blocked or slowed down or amended.
Better late than never, perhaps, but it would have been a damn sight better if earlier. However it’s water under the bridge. At least this significantly raises the profile of the court challenge, and with luck may bring in more donations to the fund.
Hard to imagine how with all the publicity anyone in Canada will be able to convince IRS they didn’t know about this, a year or two down the pike. “Going full ostrich” is a rapidly diminishing, if not already dead, option for a lot of Canadians who might have US indicia on their bank records (or a US birthplace on their passport and no CLN).
@ Ian: AFAIK no one who has a relinquishment case dating back as far as yours, and especially no one who took out Canadian citizenship before 1973, when Canada still required you to swear an oath renouncing your previous nationality before becoming Canadian, is going to have ANY problem getting a relinquishment CLN dated back to the day you became a Canadian. I would argue (but I’m not a lawyer) that possession of a copy of that oath of renunciation you swore on becoming Canadian, should be more than sufficient to convince your bank(s) not to consider your accounts reportable to IRS. If you haven’t already done so, go to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website and file an Access to Information Request to get a full copy of your citizenship file, there should be a copy of your renunciation oath in that file and you should get it from them by mail within a month or two or three (depending on what their workloads are these days). Others in your situation have succeeded in doing this. The web link to use is this one:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/atip/form-imm5563.asp
Good luck, Godspeed, and don’t ever send or sign anything to the IRS!
I agree, maintaining full ostrich stance is getting harder and harder unless you can prove you’ve been in a coma. That leaves people the choice to either a) come into compliance or b) give generously to ADCS!
Also… front page Friday’s Vancouver Sun: ‘Fear and loathing over Uncle Sam’s tax Crackdown’ — D.Todd , and in the same paper an excellent Guest Editorial from the Calgary Herald (I believe).
I didn’t see these mentioned on the list; but might have missed it.
H.
@Schubert1975, @Bubblebustin
Its very easy to get busy with life & not know a darn thing. I barely have time to read much less keep up with tv with all the schedules, work, & family… so its not burying your head in the sand that is the issue… its trying to stay awake & remembering to bring back the same number of kids u left the house with and to make sure I got the right ones also…… lol
…yet you still found out, US Foreign Person. I agree to the extent that when I was that person you described, I would have been too busy and cash strapped to do much about it and would have probably left it to others to deal with. I would have given what I could to ADCS, though.
@Ian
You are not a U.S. citizen and don’t let anyone accuse you of being one.
Important NOTE re contacting CBC — not by comment at the story but by email:
I put my comments in comments at the CBC page and they are still in moderation (all day long). I finally figured out that really where they tell us to communicate our stories is at by email to allinaday@cbc.ca, per:
Are you affected by FATCA? Get in touch with us* and tell us your story. We’ll continue to follow the issue in the months to come.
i.e., links to email address, allinaday@cbc.ca
I hope many, many will take advantage of this opportunity, especially given the latest post and comments: ND Law Professor Michael Kirsch explains the rationale for U.S. taxation of #Americansabroad. Michael Kirsch was one of those interviewed by CBC’s All In A Day and linked in the CBC article.
If it wasn’t for the Internet, few of us would have a clue. The internet hasn’t been around THAT long. I’d still be arguing with US border agents. I argue a lot, I’m not a compliant kind of person. LOL
@george. Thanks. My spouse was born in the US in the late 40s but became a Canadian in 1980 and has a backdated CLN to 1980. I am a born in Canada Canadian. Never lived elsewhere. I do not remember ever being asked birth information by the bank, but these things come up in idle conversation sometimes with account managers. Don’t remember if we ever revealed it. But if we did they could report it without checking with us re updated status? If they did report it might present challenges in reversing it.
my comments aren’t being approved, and only 11 so far
@badger
I am looking for them. There are over 1200 pieces of spam presently. Can u give me some indication of the time you sent them and do you mean 11 comments aren’t approved? They are not in pending nor trash and not in the spam I have gone thru so far.
Tricia,
I think badger is referring to comments on the CBC, Are You a Canada-U.S. Dual Citizen? http://www.cbc.ca/allinaday/2014/08/15/fighting-fatca/ There are now 13 comments (and I believe one of them is from our badger).
The CBC moderator is often slow to push the post button. I put in a little correction to our friend recalcitrantex’s comment which had a Kish-Kirsch mixup. (Great comment though, as are the others.) That gave me a chance to mention ADCS. Of course my reply is “in moderation”.
@calgary
yes, pacifica and I discussed it and i would have deleted this comment but now, cannot. Unless we delete both our comments. ?
Let’s wait and then delete all of these comments if we hear from Badger. Thanks, Tricia.