New York-born London mayor Boris Johnson refuses to pay US tax bill http://t.co/MaKDcZnTnM via @guardian U.S. London Emb won't pay con "tax"
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) November 20, 2014
Read the complete article here.
It includes:
Boris Johnson has revealed that he is refusing to pay a tax demand issued to him by US authorities – despite previously lambasting the US embassy in London over its failure to pay the congestion charge.
The mayor of London, who was born in New York and holds a US passport as well as a British one, visited the country last week to promote his book and said during an interview with NPR (National Public Radio) that he had been hit with a demand for capital gains tax.
He said the US demand related to his first home in the UK, which was not subject to capital gains tax in England.
And for the absolute and total U.S. hypocrisy:
Johnson has continually pressed the US embassy to pay unpaid fines it has incurred for the congestion charge. The embassy has refused to do so, claiming the charge is a tax and therefore its diplomats are immune. During a visit to the UK by Barack Obama in 2011, Johnson reportedly asked him for a £5m cheque for unpaid congestion charges but the US ambassador intervened before the president could answer. By last year the amount the US embassy owed in congestion charge fines had risen to more than £7m, the most of any diplomatic mission in the capital.
@Charl I think Laura’s articles are great and obviously not reflective of any issues you mention.
@ Bubblebustin
Thanks for the post. Any and all info is useful. So very glad to hear that the sword of Damocles is no longer hanging above your head. Perseverance furthers.
Maybe they were feeling generous because of their newest acquisition. As I understand it, emperor Obamaugustus just made another decree in which he laid claim to another 5 million earthlings. Poor souls should have read the fine print, they would have been better off remaining illegals. Anyways, congrats, that’s got to be such a burden lifted.
Charl,
There’s a commenter, Laura, and contributor to the article, Laura. To which are you referring and why?
@ProudAussie, I was privileged to have lunch a couple summers ago with @bubblebustin along with several others. I’m not sure what the purpose was, it was just that Victoria was going to be in town. Anyways sounds like Australia has the same bubble as Canada and I was reading this article that house prices in Vancouver closely track the China economy. Nobody, not even me with my senior pay, can afford a house in Vancouver now unless you have tons of cold cash. The article says the Chinese economy will still be strong but they did tweak interest rates today… so conclusion is that whenever we sell our place we still will owe over $100K to that Uncle to the south just on appreciation even though I have not lived in the States since 1985 and yet they want to tax me afterwards with the only apparent benefit have the blue thing. That is actually a liability in most countries. Fortunately I renounced over a year ago. Boris should have renounced but I hope he complains again, it is good for the injustice of Americans (or ex-Ams) abroad. He is a very colorful guy. Could be Prime Minister of GB someday.
I was referring to the commenter Laura. Sorry I wasn’t clear. My thoughts were maybe if the issues are presented from a fellow homelander they appear less of an attack and quite possibly could garner some thoughtful reflection rather than just a reactive defensive response. As of yet there has been one poster in agreement, none of the “door hit you, just renounce” garbage. (YET)
@Calgary @JC
That was one of those epic fail jokes. I seem to be the one with the multiple personality disorder these days. And I am NOT beautiful!
Thank you everyone for your congratulations for my having run the OVDI gauntlet. Although I’m relieved that it’s over after so long, I can’t say that I’m particularly happy. In fact I feel as ripped off, screwed, and as angry as Boris Johnson does. Unlike him though, I can now put it behind me, which is something to rejoice in. It’s actually kind of uncanny that his situation would make itself public right now, as it parallels mine so much in that he has an easily discoverable tax liability that he incurred before he knew about his filing obligations to the US. How do you reconcile that without some major upheaval in your life? You simply can’t.
EmBee, I’ll do what you suggest when I can gather my thoughts about this. It’s truly bittersweet.
“Please no black-op helicopter rescue myths.”
Eat that Robert Stack!
Pingback: The Isaac Brock Society | $77,986 more needed to make the February 1 2015 payment for Canadian FATCA IGA lawsuit/ Il nous reste 77 986 $ à ramasser pour notre poursuite judiciaire
Brockers may want to comment at the blog below. Give the author an earful.
http://www.markpack.org.uk/93498/boris-johnson-turns-tax-dodger-will-apply-standards/
bubblebustin,
What eats at me so much is how all of this has put my life / our lives on hold.
There are so many better, more worthwhile things I can and want to be doing with my time to help my community and to enjoy some of my retirement years, and I’m sure others feel that too. Those of my *needs* for myself as a human being are shunted aside to deal with this absurdity. When I said early on that this has taken the joy out of my life, I absolutely still mean that as part of the joy in my life is being able to give back, especially now that I should have more time in my retirement. US citizenship-based taxation absurdity has up-ended many contributions we could give in our communities that need our involvement.
Yes, you are, Charl. You are working to right the wrongs — that is beautiful!
If Boris’ US Tax bill was only $1, I don’t believe he would pay it on common sense grounds.
At the end of the day, no ex-pats believe in taxation without government services. Boris also would be over the moon about all the intrusive information returns as well.
The boneheads in DC don’t seem to realise if the US upsets enough people there will be an increasing blowback right in their faces.
The best way to get rid of CBT is to enforce it and hopefully exempting resident citizens from FATCA as well.
Is Boris and other dual US ex-pats really just going to accept the US’ position? Worse comes to worse they’ll renounce. Are people really going to be sympathic to the US handcuffing people to the US Tax system in Boris’ position?
On the contrary rather than being seen as a tax cheat, Boris will by most people be seen to be standing up to the utter non-sense of CBT. Fighting CBT and the US will help Boris not hurt.
The ‘tax cheat’ Boris headlines are just that -headlines. I hope the Yanks in the IRS are able to read between the lines of British papers and see that the bad guy in the articles is really the US.
One important point I haven’t seen aired (though it may well have been): UKIP, the UK’s gadfly but increasingly popular third party, would surely back Boris’ line. That could well force the other parties also to dig in against US extraterritorial tax nonsense. UKIP just won a second successive by-election this week so it is in influential mode. UKIP could be a key player in this.
npr coverage this morning
http://www.npr.org/2014/11/22/365910496/londons-mayor-calls-u-s-tax-bill-outrageous
How about renaming Isaac Brock Society the “Boris Johnson Society”. That will get some attention.
(Just kidding)
@ Just Me
I’m having trouble signing in at NPR. Have you got time to put a common sense, counter argument up there to dilute the misguided comments that are appearing? Sometimes I think we’ll never get past Square One with the people in the USA. This one’s particularly baffling and grating.
Pahl Scharping wrote:
@Star – UKIP is a waste of time with FATCA – they were email months ago and haven’t heard back since.
What’s in it for Nigel? Immigration is his poster child not FATCA.
@NorthernSchrike – How about the Boris Johnson Society in London – even better?
@Don – What a shame. Wonder if they can be shamed into supporting the right thing. Won’t hold my breath.
Incidentally, I’m sure others have pointed this out, but Boris is a lot less American than Winston Churchill was. If Winston Churchill were alive today he’s automatically be considered a US Person.
Here’s a very rough idea of what Boris would owe.
This is a rough estimation of what Mr. Johnson would owe (not including penalties, interest and FBAR – he would almost have to agree to an in-lieu of penalty of 27.5% of his highest account balance in OVDI, otherwise he would be bankrupt for sure). His salary of £394,000 converts today to $617,603 USD. He could deduct the FEIE – $97,6600 (2013 figure). Tax at 39% on that gross/unadjusted figure ($520,003) would be $202,801 USD. Does that sound fair ? As far as his home is concerned, sold for £1,200,000 with a cost of £470,000 -gives a gain of £730,000. Converted to USD, the capital gain is $1,144,290. Divide in half (his portion) and deduct the limit of $250,000, gives a taxable figure of $322,144. Does that sound fair? Of course that would not include any investment income and god help him if he has PFICs. Income all earned in the UK. Totally unconnected to the US. Taxes paid on in the UK on his earned income. Hasn’t lived in the US since he was 5. His second sin, travels on a US passport since the famous incident in 2006. He was not merely hassled. He was flying to Mexico via the US. They would not let him board, and he was separated from his family. He had to return to Madrid and pay for another ticket. That is outrageous.
The US thinks it is entitled to tax $842,148 of Mr. Johnson’s money simply because he was born in the US. Who could blame him for avoiding the torture of renouncing? As a dual citizen, the option of relinquishing is not available. The only thing Mr. Johnson has going for him is should he comply and then renounce, he will be exempt from the exit tax.
@EmBee
Don’t you just love Paul Scharping’s threats? Spoken like a true Homelander. Made me mad enough to comment.
Maybe we should start a petition to protest any confiscatory attempts by the IRS on BJ’s $$$.
Maybe more expats would sign.
Maybe the world would listen up.
@bubblebustin, I’ve been working my way backwards along different threads and trying to catch up (not much access to internet for a while, or time to access it) and saw your comments and the good news;
http://isaacbrocksociety.ca/2014/11/20/that-mayoroflondon-is-a-good-man-but-he-still-suffers-from-the-u-s-taint/comment-page-4/#comment-4410124
I am so happy that this is now coming to a conclusion – though so sad at the useless and needless waste of ‘life credit units’ – Just Me’s LCUs and resources – monetary and personal that have gone into achieving some kind of resolution. What a travesty. I hope this turn of events in your situation heralds some progress for un-named others in similar straits.
And what exactly did the US, the IRS and Treasury actually reap from all this? They bought themselves deepening resistance, opposition and opprobrium from Canadians and others around the globe. They’ll still be pretending that FATCA and the extraterritoral enforcement of CBT is a desirable thing, but they know it is more and more a bold faced unsupportable lie.
@badger
Thanks. The only joy that I can take from this is that it clears me for a renunciation of the no- strings-attached variety.
@Tricia
Boris is screwed just as I was. What’s to stop him from doing Streamlined with no FBAR penalties? He’d do best however to to submit more than three years to include the year he sold his house so as to not appear like he’s trying to evade the tax on it – as the 6 years of FBAR’s would reveal it and now that the cat’s out of the bag on it anyway.
@Tricia
Boris could also deduct from the proceeds any costs of improvements he’d made to his home. I believe the Bush tax cuts were still around in 2009, so the capital gain rate would be 15%.