cross posted from ADCSovereignty page
UPDATE September 28, 2015
CANADA
from Tricia Moon:
As we wait (and wait and wait) I thought I would tell you of a small thing that happened to me that might make a few people feel better…
I opened a (new) bank account last Friday with a different branch of BNS than the one where I still have quite a few accts. After about 3 mins, poof! Not asked “Are you or have you ever been an American citizen/U.S. “Person?” Not asked to fill out a W8 or W9.
I asked the gentleman why and he said as an existing customer, they already have done the KYC/AML procedures etc.I mentioned that I renounced, had a CLN etc and we had a very nice discussion.
However, it was interesting that he didn’t pick up that the bank could have been in error by not asking considering I very much was US for the majority of my time as their customer. Meaning lots of others who haven’t renounced/have no CLN may well not have to worry…
Many duals will obviously be able to evade detection -even with new accounts- if their banks have similar policies. He also told me that it is illegal for a bank to photocopy any identification documents. And never to let anyone take ID to do that.
So perhaps, way back when, even if one DID use a a non-US passport with a US birthplace, I can’t really imagine the birthplace being written down-just the passport number (of course, for years prior to FATCA).
September 27, 2015
from Dr. Stephen Kish:
Yesterday I attended a meeting of the Republican Overseas (RO), who are mounting their own lawsuit against FATCA and the IGAs. I met, for the first time in person, Dani Küttel, who has been posting on this site and who is one of the plaintiffs. The U.S. Government lawyers, as expected, are attempting to contest “standing” of all of the plaintiffs arguing that our wounds are self-inflicted. The decision on the RO injunction (September 28-29) will be made at about the same time as that for our request for a stay (September 28?) and their attorney will advise me as soon as the Federal Court has ruled in their case.
September 26, 2015
from Dr. Stephen Kish:
“LITIGATION UPDATE: We instructed the Arvay-Gruber team to take legal steps to prevent the handover and obtain a stay related to the summary trial appeal. It is likely now (but situation still fluid) that the Court will hear our motion for a stay. There will be no oral arguments and the court will consider our arguments based on the written submission only. The Government of Canada will also file written materials. I will release the motion when I am able to do so.
The “live feed” below will pick up every tweet that uses the hashtag#StopFatca. Please help get this message out-join our Tweet brigade (another version of Brock SWAT) now at 56! Canadians have 1 day to continue pressuring the government prior to transmission on Sept 29. Other Model 1 IGA countries have 2 days prior to transmission on Sept 30. Please advise of any countries who have received an extension from the September 30, 2015 deadline. Also please advise if you know of any governments who have notified the IRS that they want the extension.
Every US Person abroad needs to put the same pressure on their own governments TO STOP THE EXCHANGES FROM TAKING PLACE as all Model 1 IGA’s require turnover of information by September 30. Each government has TO ACTUALLY REQUEST THIS EXTENSION FROM THE IRS, so members need to take responsibility for making sure their respective tax authority/government does so.
WORLD
The Treasury Department is up to something. new CAAs signed
The titles of both agreements include the words “to improve International Tax Compliance and to Implement FATCA. I am afraid to imagine what that actually means.
A competent authority arrangement is a bilateral agreement between the U.S. and its treaty partners to clarify or interpret provisions of an existing tax treaty, such as the ones used to justify the intergovernmental agreements, or IGAs, under FATCA
“The signing of these Competent Authority Arrangements marks another significant milestone in the international effort to gain proper reporting of offshore accounts and income,” said IRS Commissioner John Koskinen in a statement. “Together in partnership with other tax authorities, we are demonstrating how far we have come in the fight against offshore tax evasion.”
ATO hands over bank details to US Internal Revenue Service
THE AUSTRALIAN SEPTEMBER 24, 2015 12:00AM
The Australian Taxation Office has handed the US Internal Revenue Service details of more than 30,000 bank accounts containing more than $5 billion in the first transfer of information under America’s Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.The ATO said that in return for supplying the FATCA data, the IRS will give it information about Australians with US accounts that will be used to root out undeclared offshore income.Its figures imply the accounts, revealed to the IRS in the first tranche of data, have an average balance of more than $160,000.
Note: Link not guaranteed due to paywall
Jamaica reportedly will not take advantage of the delay in transmitting information to the IRS. (Waiting for source)
A Liechtenstein court that ordered a temporary injunction was to give a decision on September 18 (last Friday). We are looking for information on the decision. (hattip to Mary Margreiter)
CANADA
Making this a political issue in Canada & linking to October 19, 2015 election
Important Swing Ridings – Strategic Voting Necessary to Prevent CPC being elected
Riding: DELTA
The Honorable Kerry-Lynne Findlay
Minister of National Revenue (CRA) & defendant in Summary Trial
If you are voting strategically & your riding is Delta, pls vote Liberal
All Candidates Meeting
Wednesday, September 30, 7-9 pm North Delta Secondary School
11447 82nd Avenue Delta, BC V4C 5J6 MAP
This page has contact numbers, links to riding boundaries, other candidates running etc.
Riding: EGLINTON LAWRENCE
The Honorable Joe Oliver
Minister of Finance
If you are voting strategically & your riding is Eglinton Lawrence, pls vote Liberal
Get your T-Shirt HERE.
RESOURCES TO USE/SHARE
STRATEGIC VOTING:
Strategic Voting.com
AND Vote Together
FOR EMAIL:
ADCS PR pdf file: ADCS PR 19SEP15 pdf
ADCS PR png file: ADCS PR 19SEP15 png
ADCS letter to Minister Findlay: adcs_reqminfind_b_sep_21_2015-1
Elizabeth May GPC letter to PMSH pdf:fatca-lettertoprimeminister_0
Nathan Cullen NDP letter to Ministers Findlay & Oliver: 2015-09-21 Letter – Cullen to CRA-Fin re FATCA-1
John Weston CPC to Minister Findlay:Weston to MNR
For TWITTER:
Please use this hashtag: #StopFatca.
Please use RT on every Tweet
NB: If you RT someone, please put #StopFatca in the reply space above the tweet you’re retweeting. Otherwise, your RTs won’t show up in the feed and we want to see every single Tweet!
You can use this shortened link in order to get more info, hastags, etc into the tweet: http://bit.ly/1WaBY1i
Since it is a Twitter assault, may I suggest that you manageflitter.com use to identify your followers with the highest influence, and contact them to RT. Let the assault begin!
CRA
@KerryLynneFindl Minister of National Revenue
@AndrewTreusch Commissioner of Revenue
@JohnOssowski Deputy Commissioner of the CRA
@OTO_Canada Office of the Taxpayers Ombudsman
Ministry of Finance & Standing Committee
@MinJoeOliver Minister joe.oliver@parl.gc.ca 613-369-3710 TO office:Tel 416-781-5583 Fax: 416-781-5586
@AndrewSaxton1 Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance andrew.saxtion@parl.gc.ca
@KevinASorenson K.Sorenson@fin.gc.ca Minister of State (Finance)
@TimSargent Associate Deputy Minister
Members of Standing Committee for Finance are HERE .
If you already have followers who are not expats but may be sympathetic, share other political issues, please send them the tweet directly with the RT; don’t assume they will see it in their feed just because they follow you. Creating a network with other users is important in order to utilyze social media to the max.
Tweet to individuals
If you don’t want to write your own, you can copy/paste these (already tweeted so 140 characters or less)
CDN govt 2 turn over 1million+ of ur fellow CDNs 2 IRS
Let them know u won’t tolerate this #StopFatca RT
#StopFatca Stop PMSH from allowing IRS 2 manage
CDN banks! Protect CDNs’ privacy! Tell CDN govt NO!Pls RT
Financial info of 1million fellow CDNs 2 b given 2 IRS
bc PMSH wants 2! Violates sovereignty & privacy RT #StopFatca
Tweet to Govt/Mp’s etc:
No need 4 CDN govt 2 transfer CDNs’info due 2 IRS delay
Protect CDN sovereignty & privacy rights #StopFatca RT
Govt of CAD:IRS delays transfer of financial info-don’t betray 1million+ CDNS
Will remember on 10/19 #StopFatca RT
Govt of CAD:IRS delays transfer of financial info-don’t betray 1million+ CDNS
Will remember on 10/19 #StopFatca RT
Experienced users who can add a 2nd hashtag as well as using #StopFatca and RT
please also use the following #s as they will link to the network of other CDNs involved in the anti-harper govt re-election
#elxn42 #elxn2015 #ABC2015 #cdnpoli #GoHarperGo #harperman #StopHarper #Heavesteve2015
For FACEBOOK:
You can share from any of these groups:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/citizenshiptaxation/
https://www.facebook.com/ADCSovereignty/
https://www.facebook.com/ADSCanadienne/
https://www.facebook.com/The-Isaac-Brock-Society-341446319218930/timeline/
https://www.facebook.com/USExpatsCanada/
Or from these pages:
“https://www.facebook.com/CitizenshipTaxation/
https://www.facebook.com/AccidentalAmericans/
Other pages that also have this post/information:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/AmericanExpatriates/permalink/516231728542904/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/AARO.Open.Forum/permalink/10150558700159950/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/accidental.americans/permalink/121884294833336/
Thank you, Native Canadian! You are *doing* what every fibre of my being wishes I could do. Looking forward to hearing more about it.
Home from work after a long night last night and work today. Here is the skinny… I went to a candidates debate last night for my local candidates. This was finally an open microphone night. The last debate was by written questions only and mine never got asked. When I approached the mic, I was allowed to quickly explain FATCA and most key points about it. the first words to the crowd of about 100 people were… Nobody in this room knows that they are paying to enforce American laws on Canadians in Canada. I ask everyone in this room to go to any bank and try to open an account. You will be asked where you were born or to prove your birth country through ID. As of Canada day 2014 the Conservative government stripped certain Canadians of their privacy rights by allowing American law to over ride Canadian laws.. Canada was threatened by the USA and told that if we do not force their laws on Canadians and implement them into our banks, we will be sanctioned with crippling costs to our financial system if we refuse. Canada gets nothing in return but you ALL pay for it at an approximate cost of over 100 million per bank or credit unions. I urge anyone here who banks at a credit union to please attend your next shareholder’s meeting and ask exactly how much YOU will pay for this out of your own pocket. TO all candidates, when replying to my question, please do not refer to ANY immigrant to Canada who is a Canadian citizen as a dual. If you do, that would imply that every immigrant is actually not a Canadian, but merely someone who is just living and paying taxes here and that is not the case ion MY Canada. My question is… Are ALL Canadians equal in their rights and protections under the Charter and our constitution? Well, the Liberal candidate answered that they know about this issue and will work to get a better agreement to protect Canadians. The Green party candidate also stated that Elizabeth May fully supports the rights of Canadians and that she will stand against the IGA. The NDP had a copy of Nathan Cullen’s letter and explained that they fully disagree with this whole “agreement” and will seek to re-open it and make changes to protect Canadians. The Conservative Candidate explained that this was an agreement from the USA to catch “tax evaders” and that in the deal, Canada’s RRSP RDSP RESP were all exempt and it was a good deal. This is where things changed. I told her to stop lying as these were reportable when money was withdrawn from them and taxed by the IRS as “income” She then called Canadians “duals” and I told here that was an INSULT to Canadians and to please stop. We got a bit heated at this point and I told her to call every single immigrant to Canada a “dual” and strip them all of their rights. Well, this basically ended our conversation. Of course, I was wearing my shirt.. I had several people coming to me shaking my hand and telling me they hated Harper and will vote anything but Conservative. I also had 3 people approach me and tell me they were “hiding” their birthplace as they heard what Canada was doing to them. These people were in their retirement years. This is interesting that if I combine the two debates, the first one with about 70 people and this one with 100, total was 170 and 5 people between the two approached me and told me they had to now “hide” from the government, wow, the ratio is not good. I am asking anyone and everyone to please go to these debates and ask educated questions. I need help here getting the issue out there. This can be a huge election issue if we ALL go out and make these traitors responsible and credible for their actions against Canadians. The local past Conservative here, Joe Preston and I had words as well. I took ALL my emails asking for a meeting with him as they were all ignored. In front of many people, he said they were ignored because I was not affected by this personally. Well, I said I was not yet, but it has affected my family, but I guess you don’t care about them do you Joe! My next debate is this Monday and is a big one… Stay tuned!!!
Based on information in my post below on the number of innocent Canadians/accounts the Conservative Government aims to turn over to IRS September 29 or 30, you might want to begin a new social media effort using the number provided by CRA “155,000”.
It would be interesting to know how many accounts on average get reported to the IRS under the existing (pre-FATCA) Canada/US tax treaty. Does 155,000 accounts represent a big surge in the number of accounts because of FATCA? It would also be interesting to know how many of these accounts have a US address attached to them.
And were ANY of the 155,000 subject to a probable cause warrant?
I doubt it and without that , they are all illegal. Not to mention contravention of provincial privacy laws.
I still don’t understand the “reciprocal” part they are stating. In what way are they going to exchange information if the US banks haven’t even started collecting information yet. Maybe through tax 1040s?
@2terrified:
Canada should be saying “You show me yours before I show you mine.” Actually, though, they should be saying, “Let’s all keep our clothes on.”
@Tricia, I have long since condemned the phrase “dual citizen” as being a closet racist phrase.
Its a term that reminds me of 1942 California where US Citizens were portrayed as having allegience to the emperor of Japan.
Especially in light of Native Canadians report in Ontario of the Conservative candidate, the statements by the Govt lawyers, the actions in Courts on both sides of the border…….we must all stop using the term Dual!!!!
To be honest, if Dual Citizen had not come into being and instead it was rightfully referred to as clinging, I am not sure we would be in the dark place we are today.
At this point, the USA has a new world record that they created. The USA has forced every country in the world to turn against it’s own citizens out of FEAR. This most certainly should be reported to Guinness
From someone for whom it’s been a long day (sent to me) to all others for whom it’s been a long day:
About sums it up.
155,000 bank records, or approximately 15% of all “US persons” in Canada. Does each bank report have to have a SSN attached to it? What about individuals who came to Canada without a SSN? If you’ve never had an SSN, can you assume your bank records are still safe? There are so many unknowns.
Are you a US person? At this point it’s probably safest to deny, deny, deny.
‘I have long since condemned the phrase “dual citizen” as being a closet racist phrase.
Its a term that reminds me of 1942 California where US Citizens were portrayed as having allegience to the emperor of Japan.’
Those US citizens were single citizens not dual citizens. Same in 1942 Canada, when Canadian citizens born in Canada were portrayed as having allegiance to the country their parents or grandparents came from. Canada wasn’t even attacked, but it put its own citizens in concentration camps.
A minority actually were Japanese citizens though, having immigrated to either the US or Canada but not having naturalized. It would have been reasonable to deport those people.
@Norman Diamond:
Ukrainian-Canadian
Italian-Canadian
German-Canadian
Japanese-Canadian
These four ethnic groups each faired badly under Canadian governments during the last two World Wars, forced to spend the duration of the wars behind the wire.
My daughter attends high school here in the Okanagan at the site of one of the former WWI internment camps:
http://www.vernonmorningstar.com/lifestyles/129992283.html
In 2015, “American-Canadians” are the new second-classed Canadian. Under the Harper Conservatives, we are not full Canadians. I suspect the Supreme Court of Canada will differ with Parliament on this one.
Native Canadian: Marvelous work! Can’t wait for your next installment! And I hope there are others who feel able to join you in this mission. There are still lots of opportunities to get our voices heard in many different ways before Oct. 19.
A thanks to the person who initiated this second-hand request / suggestion that I received in email:
Has anyone contacted John Oliver or be willing to take this on?
I tried to rally a Twitter brigade on FB to tweet John Oliver’s producer, but didn’t really have much success…
It’s not like you can just call these guys up.
@ Bubblebustin
Hmm that is unfortunate. Perhaps this would have more traction since people can post under the thread with their experience… Stories may be more compelling then shooting short twitter comments with no real explanation why it is a problem.
On another note John Oliver was making a joke the other night how America split from the UK because of “tax with out representative” yet he can’t vote because he has a green card.
In regards of trying to make the situation aware to John Oliver. There are a decent amount of people working against fatca/cbt. Surely there has to be someone who is influential or well connected enough to help make it happen? I dunno Solomon Yue or something? I can see John Oliver coming up with something satirical about this.
I do think there is not enough awareness on the matter and a John Oliver coverage would help… Simply not enough people in the know to get any momentum.