Liberty and justice for all United States persons abroad

The Isaac Brock Society

Media and Blog Articles – Part 1 of 11 (to 26 May 2015)

You can access all years at this link:

http://isaacbrocksociety.ca/media-and-blog-articles-links-for-all-years/

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.  You could mention such articles in the comment stream for this page, or if I see one on another thread, I can copy the link to here. I’ll keep adding to the list, but not deleting, so we’ll end up having sort of a “bibliography” too.  [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.

Note also: JC suggests 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.

26 May 2015:  This thread is now closed.  It continues at Media and Blog Articles Open for Comment, Part 2 of 2.

2015.05.26

New Survey finds US expat voting could impact 2016 Presidential Election, Greenback Expat Tax Services, NASDAQ GlobeNewswire.

This congressional committee wants to hear all your FOIA gripes, Colby Itkowitz, Washington Post, US.

The black money recovery skills of IT department are nothing to write home about, Vivek Kaul, The Daily Reckoning.

2015.05.25

The Intersection of US Federal Tax Law with Collection of International Information- – Including Other  Federal Agencies, Patrick W. Martin, TaxExpatriaation, US.

2015.05.23

America the not so brave:  America has led the global assault on tax dodgers and their enablers.  But the reality still lags behind the rhetoric, The Economist, UK.

Cash Banned from Chase Safe Deposit Boxes, Matt Chilliak, Live and Invest News.

2015.05.22

US Steuergesetz hat unerwartete globale Konsequenzen, Colleen Graffy, Geopolitical Information Service.  Also at Consequences of US widening net to catch tax dodgers, Colleen Graffy, World Review.

The horse may have bolted … but, Angelo Venardos, Asia Asset Management.

Important Correction:  Passports Required to Enter and Leave US — but SSNs May be Optional, Patrick W. Martin, Tax Expatriation, US.

2015.05.21

Americans working abroad face unexpected financial issues, Sarah O’Brien, NBC, US.

Senate tax reform groups get more time, Bernie Becker, The Hill, US.

2015.05.20

Malaysia will defer FATCA reporting, FSI Tax Posts.

America’s Self-Inflicted Wound, Moises Naim, The Atlantic, US.

Janice Mays:  The Tax Guru Who Guides House Democrats, Alex Brown, National Journal, US.

Sen. Rand Paul Launches Filibuster in Protest of Patriot Act Renewal, C-SPAN, US.

Articles from earlier in 2015 are at this link

Articles from 2014 are at this link

Media and Blog Articles Open for Comment, Part 2, is at this link

Media and Blog Articles Open for Comment, Part 3, is at this link

3,971 thoughts on “Media and Blog Articles – Part 1 of 11 (to 26 May 2015)”

  1. The United Kingdom is serious about cracking down on its “semi-domestic” tax havens:

    Ed Miliband tonight warns the tax havens costing British families and businesses billions of pounds that they will have just six months to put their house in order and open their books – or face being placed on an international blacklist.

    He will highlight figures showing that despite David Cameron boasting more than 18 months ago that he had forced tax havens to open up, not one of the tax havens linked to Britain as Overseas Territories or Crown Dependencies have yet delivered on Cameron’s promise that they would publish a register showing who owns the companies registered there – and some have explicitly refused to do so.

    Meanwhile, the recent Obama budget has nothing at all about the U.S. capital gains tax exemption for people who move to Puerto Rico (enabled by 26 CFR 1.937, doesn’t even require Congressional approval to change it), nor about getting the states to collect beneficial ownership information for companies to provide alleged FATCA “reciprocity”

  3. I received this tweet from Laura Saunders:

    Laura Saunders ‏@Saunderswsj 1h1 hour ago
    @JCDoubleTaxed So many stories, so little time –LS

    In response to:

    JC Double Taxed ‏@JCDoubleTaxed Feb 18
    @Saunderswsj ? why architects of #FATCA not interviewed for harms of OS US citizens b/c suppression of press freedom? http://tiny.cc/NotFREE

    I sent similar to Solomon Yue without response.

    The issue raised is freedom of the press, and why are not the architects of FATCA interviewed in regards to the harms of policy on US persons overseas?

    The plan now is that the text from @Marc will be seen in comment sections.

  5. The title of Watcher’s Economist URL is
    “The long arm of the IRS An Englishman’s home” and there is space for comment. Mentions another case of someone who had left U.S. as baby and had to pay a six-figure IRS bill when he did not even know he was a citizen (now ex-citizen, of course).

    Gerald Nowotny at JD Supra has also written a nice piece “Be Careful for What You Wish For! Reconsidering the Tax Traps of the EB-5 Visa.” No space to comment, just good to see that someone besides Eric commenting on this. It seems like foreign investors are beginning to develop IRS-itis as well.

  7. Satire found on the ADCS-ADSC Facebook Blog:

    From Moncton, NB, February 19, 2015: Atlantic Lotto to ban Americans from winning

    Moncton — Atlantic Lottery Corporation (ALC) announced today that Americans living in New Brunswick will be forbidden to win Atlantic Lottery games.

    In defense of the decision, New Brunswick Premier Brian Gallant stated: “Too much of the winnings are being paid to the IRS, and it’s costing New Brunswickers jobs. They may continue to play though,” Gallant said. “We are not a cruel province. Our intent is not to deny them the ability to bet on American football and baseball. They just won’t be able to take home the payouts.”

    …

    “We discovered the other 12 percent was being paid to the IRS as income tax by American residents living in New Brunswick. We were shocked to learn America taxes its citizens on top of Canada’s taxes, and they tax lottery winnings too.”

    Nearly 3,000 winning tickets are submitted by Americans daily. Shepherd estimated that in 2012, around $50 million was paid to the IRS from lottery winnings. “That’s a lot of lost jobs,” he said.

    When asked how this information was uncovered, Shepherd replied, “America made it easy. Their new FATCA law forces every American living in Canada to register with their banks as Americans. All of our large payouts are made by direct deposit, and we will be instructing banks to reject all transfers to American persons.” American persons are American citizens as well as Canadian Green Card holders who have skipped out on America and are still required to pay American taxes. Americans can still receive small cash payouts made at a store, but “we are investigating solutions.”

  10. LOL, bubblebustin and EmBee.

    Foiled again. Same as RDSPs and RESPs and TFSAs, Canadian mutual funds, gains on sale of Canadian homes, etc. All theft from Canada!

    Where is Deckard when I need a lesson on what satire is?

  11. Don’t feel bad, Calgary411, once the world gets wind of how toxic we are, something like this won’t be out of the realm of possibilities.

  12. Hmmm, if I go in on a ticket with three coworkers and we win, will the irs only tax me or is the entire wining taxable?

  13. From Professor Allison Christians:

    Together with Reuven Avi-Yonah, I am seeking paper proposals for a Citizenship and Taxation Symposium, to be held at the University of Michigan Law School, Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Friday, October 9, 2015. The call for papers closes on February 28.

    This symposium will focus on ongoing developments regarding the unique US practice of taxing citizens who live permanently overseas. With the adoption of regimes such as the expatriation tax added by IRC § 877A and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), the taxation of non-residents with US person status now has serious and tangible implications.

    For more info:

    http://taxpol.blogspot.ca/2015/02/icymi-call-for-papers-conference-on.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+TaxSocietyCulture+(Tax,+Society+%26amp;+Culture)

  14. From The Economist article:

    A neighbour of this correspondent, who was born in America but moved to Britain as a child, recently received a huge bill from the IRS, out of the blue, for many years of unfiled taxes.

    Would be interesting to know the story behind this. How did the IRS become aware of said neighbour? How did the IRS calculate amount owed? Were penalties imposed? Etc.

  20. bubblebustin,

    Can you try again — I thought I had fixed the link. I got “page not found” as well, but I worked on it and it now works for me.

  22. @calgary411 um, thanks anyhow but I think I’ll pass. I’ll just put five bucks towards the adcs fund instead.

  24. Why Canada’s snowbirds are under U.S. scrutiny

    Even less than 182 days, though, and they still might meet what the U.S. Internal Revenue Service calls its “substantial presence” test. It is a complicated formula, but if snowbirds spend more than roughly 120 days per year in the United States over a three-year period, the IRS starts getting interested in them.

    “The technology has finally gotten to the point where they can track border crossings easily,” said Walters. “Snowbirds are very aware of this. Some of them have become pretty paranoid about it.”

    But the lure of a warmer climate can be very powerful indeed. Canadians purchased U.S. properties worth $13.8 billion in the 12 months leading up to March 2014, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors.

    That makes for 15% of all international sales. Canadians’ favorite spots, perhaps not surprisingly: Florida, Arizona and California, making for almost three-quarters of all their purchases.

    More than 500,000 Canadians own real estate in Florida alone, according to BMO Financial Group, whose Annual Snowbird Outlook – issued last October – predicts continued gains for snowbird homeowners.
    …
    Also, know the letter of the law. Even if snowbirds meet the IRS’ “substantial presence” test, for instance, they can still fill out the agency’s Form 8840. It asserts closer connections to Canada, and should stave off any potential problems.

    Finally, when crossing the border, Walters advises that snowbirds come equipped with a “border kit” that proves Canadian residency in multiple ways – things like utility bills and property-tax statements.

    As for Richard Simpson, he does not regret leaving his homeland behind, at least for the coldest parts of the year. “Whenever I see the Canadian weather on TV, I think, ‘Thank God I’m here in Florida – and thank God I’m wearing shorts.'”

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