Interesting: @SenMikeLee and Lawyer Jim Bopp to storm Europe to rally opposition to U.S. #FATCA tax law http://t.co/AiqwGQvrr9 –
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) September 24, 2014
This article appeared in the Washington Times and commenting is open. It’s an opportunity to discuss those “tax cheat” Americans abroad with those enlightened homelanders.
The article includes:
The two men’s target will be the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, approved by a Democrat-controlled Congress in 2010. Critics say it is invading banking privacy and treating all Americans abroad as tax evaders until they can prove otherwise.
The law has been blamed for hundreds of Americans renouncing their U.S. citizenship.
“This is another example of dysfunctional government policy that is hurting middle-class Americans, treating them unfairly and ultimately doing much more harm than good,” Mr. Lee told The Times. “It shows the need for significant tax reform that removes — not strengthens — the barriers standing in the way of each American’s unique
pursuit of happiness.”
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter
Lots going on in the comment section over here. Could use some new names in the battle!
Lee 4 prez
Man- I can’t even bear to read those stupid comments. People will find all sorts of rationalisations to spend other people`s money. If American homelanders were faced with what expats are faced with – double taxation, expensive tax accountants, phantom gains, the threat of ruinous penalties and all- they`d be up on the barricades.
In fact- why DOESNT the government raise taxes on homelanders? Why not get the cash from their own residents? Because it will affect the votes they get.
Talk about invading privacy and doing more harm than good, this, from the IRS today:
1. IRS Warns Financial Institutions of Scams Designed to Steal FATCA-Related Account Data
________________________________________
IR-2014-92, Sept. 24, 2014
WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today issued a fraud alert for international financial institutions complying with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). Scam artists posing as the IRS have fraudulently solicited financial institutions seeking account holder identity and financial account information.
The IRS does not require financial institutions to provide specific account holder identity information or financial account information over the phone or by fax or email. Further, the IRS does not solicit FATCA registration passwords or similar confidential account access information.
“Tax scams using the IRS name can take many forms and they are not limited by national borders,” said IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. “People should always be cautious before sending sensitive information to anyone.”
Financial institutions directly registered to comply with FATCA and those in jurisdictions that are treated as having in effect intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) to implement FATCA through intergovernmental cooperation have been approached by persons representing themselves as the IRS. The IRS has reports of incidents from multiple countries and continents.
These fraudulent solicitations are known as “phishing” scams. These types of scams are typically carried out through the use of unsolicited emails and/or websites that pose as legitimate contacts in order to deceptively obtain personal or financial information.
Financial institutions or their representatives that suspect they are the subject of a “phishing” scam should report the matter to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) at 800-366-4484, or through TIGTA’s secure website. Any suspicious emails that contain attachments or links in the message should not be opened, and the email should be forwarded to phishing@irs.gov.
It must have taken every ounce of strength Mythster Stack has not to deem those phishing efforts as a “myth” @qm.
Is Canada not “overseas” enough for Mike Lee and Jim Bopp to take their message?
Oh là là! Tax scams! If the IRS isn’t bad enough for scamming the expats now the criminals are after the “tax cheats”. Beaucoup bucks to made no matter how ya extract funds from FATCA. Criminals all the way around! Life has to get better than this!
@Ann
The IRS doesn’t like competition in the lucrative extortion racket.
Scams?
IRS said: “Oh…e-filing is SOOOOOO safe. You can trust us…”
Yeah. Bullshit! >:(
What a train wreck this is. The first FATCA data files are not even due to be sent until next year and the scam artists are already out in force. It is inevitable that FATCA data on so-called US Persons will be obtained in this way, subjecting those individuals to harm. And this doesn’t even take into account the probability of bribery of bank or government officials who will have access to a FATCA list of all “Americans”, their residential addresses and all their account balances.
Any news as to when Jim Bopp might be getting started on the actual lawsuit?
“The IRS doesn’t like competition in the lucrative extortion racket.”
LOL! This cracked me up! 🙂
…what a good media article title!
Dear Mike and Jim,
I was going to vote republican, but then the renouncement fees were raised making the option of relinquishment more feasible. However, given the question on the reliquishment form asking if I ever vote in the U.S. — I decided to play it safe and not vote for GOP.
NotRobert,
I don’t understand your note to Mike and Jim.
How does the renunciation fee having been raised affect whether or not you can claim a prior relinquishment vs. renouncing?
What do you mean, playing it safe and not voting for GOP? The relinquishment form asked what you have done, not what you will do in the future.
If I vote in Nov elections do I eliminate my option of relinquishing in Dec?
Does saying “yes, I exercised my right to vote” prevent me from relinquishing?
… otherwise why are they asking?
I see; thanks for telling me when your appointment for relinquishment is — December.
Yes, NotRobert, that question on Form 4079, REQUEST FOR DETERMINATION OF POSSIBLE LOSS OF UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP, is for the US Consulate where you have an expatriation appointment to determine if you have done anything that a US citizen would do, like vote in a US election, since the date you would be claiming that you relinquished your US citizenship.
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