Liberty and justice for all United States persons abroad

The Isaac Brock Society

Media and Blog Articles Open for Comments – Part 5 of 11 (Year 2018)

You can access all years at this link: Media and Blog Articles – Links for All Years

If clicking on a link brings you to the wrong page in the comment stream, click here to get to the most recent comments.

Media and Blog Articles

EmBee suggested that it would be good if there was a thread for new articles, so that people would be aware of where to comment.   So, I created this permanent page.   I’ll make a permanent list of links posted here and keep adding to it,  but not deleting, so we’ll end up having sort of a  “bibliography” of FATCA/CBT articles.  [Note:  Some articles are not open for comments]

For more articles on FATCA, enter FATCA into Google then click on the link “more news for fatca” just below the most recent featured article.

Notes:

From JC:   To see #FATCA on Twitter for latest breaking news.  JC finds that is quite a good source and there even are some international articles that one may read using Google Translate.   Others may help certain tweets and articles remain in elevated position by retweeting them.

From Badger:   On an important archival note, please use the Internet Archive Wayback machine https://archive.org/web/ (see bottom right ‘Save Page Now’ box to enter URLs of webpages you want saved for posterity, and try to save backup copies of articles and other items of interest in some other form – such as a datastick or external drive. Some important and very significant webpages and the fulltexts of articles are no longer available (although some can be retrieved if someone using the Wayback machine saved them).

Be sure to read the comment stream for this thread — there are usually very recent articles mentioned

2018.12.23
New bill could lessen tax woes for Canadian residents with US citizenship: but the outlook is bleak for thousands grappling with Trump’s repatriation tax, Elizabeth Thompson, CBC News, Canada.
2018.12.21
Tax Fairness for Americans Abroad Act of 2018!  Let’s Get This Passed! Anthony Parent, John Richardson, Keith Redmond, IRS Medic. US.
TTFI bill introduced today, great news for Americans living in Canada, Reddit Forum.
FATCA: Significant Relief in New Proposed Regulations, Jeremy Naylor, Amanda H. Nussbaum and Martin T. Hamilton, Mondaq.
2018.12.20
Tax Fairness for Americans Abroad Act, Democrats Abroad.
2018.12.19
TCJA and US Expats, Karen Alpert, Fix the Tax Treaty, Australia.
2018.12.18
Why Banks Have Become Judge, Jury & Prosecutor and will Shut you Down Judged Guilty for Nothing That is Actually Illegal, Patriot Rising.
20`18.12.17
IRS Issues Proposed FATCA Regulations, Adrienne M. Baker, Joseph A. Riley and Jeff J. Kang, Lexology.
2018.12.13
IRS Issues Proposed Regulations on FATCA, Other Reporting Conditions, ABA Banking Journal, US.
2018.12.11
How the IRS as Gutted, Paul Kiel and Jesse Eisenger, ProPublica, US.
2018.12.08
December 2018 International Tax Reform Updates- FATCA -GILTI – TTFI, Anthony Parent interviews Keith Redmond and John Richardson, IRS Medic. (video)
2018.12.05
Explaining GILTI – Individual Impact, Karen Alpert, Fix the Tax Treaty, Australia.
2018.12.03
Luxembourg: Exchange Of Information Vs Data Protection: A Brave New World Of Transparency, Antoine Dupuis and Guilles Sturbois, Mondaq.
2018.12.00 (December 2018 edition)
EU parliament versus FATCA, Financier Worldwide.
Newsletter, Purple Expat.

 Articles from earlier in 2018 are in the Media and Blog Articles 2018 Archive.  Links to previous years’ archives are also at that link.

1,714 thoughts on “Media and Blog Articles Open for Comments – Part 5 of 11 (Year 2018)”

  1. On why isn’t there more claims of unconstitutionality against FBAR in the RO FATCA/FBAR Lawsuit

    JC:
    IMO, there could and should be more claims of unconstitutionality against #FBAR.. Not just excessive fines. Blocking employment/advancement in a corporation overseas because of signature authority is unreasonable search and seizure, and definitely unequal protection.,,,

    Solomon Yue:
    Constitutional claims need 2 show how courts decided on those claims b4. James Bopp believes we can win on #FBAR’s excessive fines. What u said is true b/c I met one. But I can’t get her 2 be a plaintiff 2 claim signature authority blocked her promotion due 2 fear of losing job.

    Solomon Yue:
    We can’t add plaintiffs when we seek SCOTUS review of 6th Circuit standing decision.

  2. BB: Thanks for posting that link. First time I’ve heard of GILTI. I think somebody around here said things were going to get worse before they got better. How right they were!

  3. GILTI is going to be a big problem for expats with small corporations (CFCs). The law is poorly written and shows no understanding of how businesses run. It seems the idea was to limit the effectiveness of territorial tax for corporations – any CFC income above a small allowed return is treated as domestic US income, taxed immediately to the shareholder. The rationale is that GILTI is supposed to measure income to intangible assets which are implicitly assumed to be intellectual property and the like that was generated inside the US. All of the Congressional assumptions underlying the GILTI computation are deeply flawed.

  5. Chairman Brady’s Ways & Means Committee is apparently reviewing new tax law for glitches, drafting errors and unintended consequences.

    “The Ways and Means Committee is on receive mode,” said Chairman Kevin Brady. “We expect to develop a punch list of provisions that need to be addressed either administratively or through changes in the code itself.”

    https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/24/tax-law-glitches-gop-423434

    My letter to Congressman Posey concerning the Transition/Repatriation Tax is currently sitting with W & M. Mr Posey’s office has requested a formal written response.

  6. For those who might have some kind of vestigial ties to Maryland, you might want to try and write to Rep. Raskin, because of his unequivocal remarks (see below) supporting tax reform relief for those ‘abroad’.

    This is from Rep. Jamie Raskin (Democrat – Maryland)
    “…..I often hear from my overseas constituents, who have
    their own profound concerns about our tax system. As someone who has
    lived abroad, I appreciate their concerns. Americans abroad are being
    treated unfairly–taxed first by their local tax authority, and again
    by the United States. No other countries tax their citizens abroad,
    with the exceptions of North Korea and Eritrea. Yet Congressional
    Republicans have chosen to ignore the nine million voices of red, white
    and blue American citizens seeking help and relief. The GOP is
    callously ignoring our citizens overseas, refusing to help millions of
    constituents abroad who desperately want and deserve expat tax reform.
    Congress should act immediately, so that U.S. citizens living abroad
    are not forced to choose between two terrible outcomes: draining their
    life savings to pay their taxes or renouncing their citizenship to
    escape this outrageous double taxation. There has been some important
    progress in this regard though. I’m pleased that my colleague from
    North Carolina, Representative George Holding, readily acknowledged the
    problem of expat taxation during the House Floor debate on H.R. 1, but
    frankly, it is shocking that the House Ways and Means Committee failed
    entirely to provide any tax reform relief whatsoever to millions of
    Americans living abroad…..”
    https://www.democratsabroad.org/rep_jamie_raskin_supports_americans_abroad_tax_reform
    https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/2017/12/21/extensions-of-remarks-section/article/e1756-1?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22jamie+raskin%22%5D%7D&r=25

  10. “stop FATCA repeal petition was circulated under the radar”

    This doesn’t make any sense. What radar is searching for anti-FATCA-repeal petitions? And what would be the point of circulating a secret anti-FATCA-repeal petition? The current administration is doing a very effective job of not repealing FATCA. No need for any help from the Democrats.

  12. Some discussion going on at Twitter in regards to RO request for hearing.

    The word and evil “retrospective” is not in there. “GILTI” not in there. & IMO the example of Apple Store Owner vs Apple multinational does not best highlight the injustice as “Apple” store owner may be associated with “Apple” the multinational. Small business with zero connection to the U.S would be a better and possibly additional good example.

    Answer: better example is a plumber in Australia or France.

    Some input from Karen:

    With GILTI, you see a lot of concern about how it will hit service companies – accountants, doctors, lawyers – with no tangible product. But I think that the example of a retail store is particularly good for GILTI – they have no intangible products that they’re making money from, but they would still be hit with GILTI. I’ve run the numbers using accounting ratios from various industries – all industries are hit except for industries like transport where the ” product” is the use of depreciable assets.

    I’m not surprised that RO left out GILTI – it really complicates the issue and isn’t due until the 2018 return.

    Hearing can instruct IRS as to how to interpret the current law .

  14. @JC

    Indeed, and well said. I can’t imagine the discussion of Apple versus Apple Store Owner resonating with anyone. I had trouble even following it, and my ultimate reaction was simply “meh”.

    Worse still, RO continues to beat the dying horse that is TTFI. This is especially flawed as it is full of clauses that would require a complete overhaul of every US tax treaty in existence, hugely increase taxes on non-resident investors, and quickly drive vast amounts of foreign investment out of the US. Congress is not going to miss this aspect of things — it is stupid, but not that stupid.

  15. “Tax law ignites White House power struggle”
    https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/23/tax-law-white-house-power-struggle-364885

    A political battle over the fate of hundreds of regulations and other guidance for the new tax law may soon land on President Donald Trump’s desk, forcing him to choose between two of his favorite Cabinet members.

    At stake is who has ultimate authority to shape the nuances of the tax cuts and other rules as part of the $1.5 trillion Republican tax overhaul: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and the IRS have that power now, but White House budget director Mick Mulvaney and some of his GOP allies in Congress want the Office of Management and Budget to have the final say.

    [..]

    The fight centers on a Reagan-era agreement that exempts IRS regulations from review by the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. Powerful factions close to the White House and on Capitol Hill say the agreement is outmoded, especially given Trump’s zeal to slash regulations, and should be modified or scrapped.

    Trump ordered Mnuchin and Mulvaney to review the IRS exemption and, “if appropriate, reconsider” its “scope and implementation,” as part of a broader April 2017 executive order to identify tax regulations that could be eliminated.

  19. @Watcher a comment back to me was: in future Apple Store Owner (USP) would be taxable while Apple mega multinational would not be taxable. This angle, IMO, gives merit to the comparison. I asked for inclusion of Joe The Plumber from Australia who has a corporate structure.

  20. The Daily Mail article about Meghan Markle brought tears to my eyes, though I’m not sure out of anger or out of sardonic laughter. Such an excellent illustration of the consequences of CBT. Not that any homelanders would care, since wealth-envy is part of the culture. If she renounces, she’ll be denounced widely in the US press as a tax dodger.

  21. I don’t know about that, Barbara. Homelanders might be more forgiving if you renounce for love, like they presume Tina Turner did.

    They also have a slobbering love affair with British royalty. It’s sickenening actually, considering their history with Britain.

  22. MuzzledNoMore – Regarding M. Ferrand’s letter – I am reserving my vives. I can’t see how it could possibly work.

    Who would bear the cost of allowing French AA’s to renounce for free? French taxpayers? Or US taxpayers? Somebody would end up paying, you can bet your bottom franc.

    Alternatively, if French AA’s were allowed not to be affected by CBT – how exactly would that work? New US law? Just for children born to French parents on US soil? Who is going to pay the legislators to pass such a law, and why would the donors let them do it?

    The French AAs’ reciprocity case seems more promising, to me. I’m keeping my fingers well crossed for that one.

  23. JC – could you explain why Joe the Plumber would have decided to incorporate? Did incorporation offer advantages in AUS and/oror US tax treatment?

  24. The retroactive transition tax is claimed to be a reclaim of tax deemed to have been payable in earlier years but deferred. Is there any basis for this, in the case of Joe the Plumber? Did incorporating save Joe US tax in past years? Or is there no basis for the claim whatsoever? Can anyone enlighten me on this point?

  25. “in future Apple Store Owner (USP) would be taxable while Apple mega multinational would not be taxable”

    Could Apple Store Owner dis-incorporate in order to stop being a Controlled Foreign Corporation going forward?

Comments are closed.

%d bloggers like this: