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.
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.
“Citizenship for Sale”– an interesting article from Bloomberg.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-11/passport-king-christian-kalin-helps-nations-sell-citizenship
File under “Shady people doing business in sunny places.”
@bubblebustin,
I didn’t notice that the Houston Law Review article by the law student was from 2014. Funny we haven’t seen mention of it before.
@Embee, that quote re the Cons, the DOJ and client privilege IS deja vu all over again. Funny, I thought the citizens of Canada were the ultimate clients. Instead, we the citizens and taxpayers and residents of Canada fund the federal government, and it then mis/uses federal resources in order to ab/use the Charter and our rights.
@badger
It would seem a game they cannot play forever.
The Charter is designed to protect us from them.
One would think they are going to pay for this through the courts. As well,
we must do what we can to prevent these people from forming the govt again.
They are…….I can’t even think of a word I can actually use in public…………
@Trish
At least not form a majority government.
A closer look at the tie-breaker rules when there’s a dispute in determining residency between Canada and the US. Could end up in an arm-wrestle between the respective authorities:
“Residency under the Canada-U.S. Income Tax Convention
Where an individual is considered a tax resident of the U.S. under U.S. domestic residence rules, and is also considered a Canadian resident under Canadian domestic residence rules, the individual’s tax residence in both countries is determined according to the residency clause contained in the Canada-U.S. Income Tax Convention (the Treaty). Article 4 of the Treaty contains a list of ordered tie-breaker rules to determine tax residency. If an Individual’s residency status cannot be settled by the first tie-breaker test, the next test is considered, and so on until the tie is broken and the country of residency is settled. The tie-breaker rules are ordered as follows:
An individual is a resident of the country in which they have a permanent home available to them.
If a permanent home is available to the individual in both countries, or in neither country, they are considered to be a resident of the country in which they have their centre of vital interests (i.e. the country with which personal and economic relations are closer).
If a centre of vital interests cannot be determined, the individual will be deemed to be a resident of the country in which they have a habitual abode.
If the individual has a habitual abode in both countries, or in neither country, they shall be deemed a resident in the country in which they are a citizen.
If the individual is a citizen of both countries, or of neither country, the competent authorities of the two countries shall settle the question by mutual agreement.”
http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=380774&email_access=on
… the competent authorities …
Oxymoron?
Citizenship-based taxation (tax on local income of individuals, on foreign income of residents, and on foreign income of nonresident citizens)
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Individual_taxation_systems.png
US tax reform needed all round…
Global Tax News, March 13, 2015: Tax Study Explains US Corporate Exodus
“In a hyper-competitive global marketplace, America’s outdated tax structure has made US companies a net target in the cross-border M&A market,” it said. “The US has the highest statutory corporate income tax rate among developed nations and is the only developed country with both a high statutory corporate income tax rate and a worldwide system of taxation.”
“American business investment and job creation are hamstrung by policymakers’ failure to fix our broken tax code,” said BRT President John Engler. “Our failed policies have turned the US into a net exporter of headquarters, valuable assets, and startup technologies. We’ve got to reverse this trend.”
…
“Over 50 percent of US multinationals’ revenue and most of their growth comes from outside the US,” Mark Weinberger, EY Global Chairman & CEO, and Chair of the BRT Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee. “Reform efforts should focus on how to increase American competitiveness through pro-growth tax reform. Debates around how to effectively tax US companies’ foreign earnings miss the point that if American companies can’t compete and win globally, there will be no earnings to bring home.”
While trolling the internet for articles about FATCA, I came across this one from the UK
http://www.thecsuite.co.uk/CFO/index.php/tax/208-fatca-in-2015-45454
The title is: FATCA in 2015: The Upcoming Compliance Requirements
and there is no opportunity to comment. However, the article does provide a timeline-reminder for what is to be reported when from FFIs in the coming months, so I though this would be a good ice-water refresher for all of us as to what we are facing this year. Read it and weep – – or, better yet, get angry and donate to the Charter Challenge immediately and often…..
Sounds like they are getting desperate. They suggest they could do the country exception without the legislature which is interesting. Robert Stack doesn’t seem to think the banks are closing accounts because of FATCA so they want proof. Of course immigrants will still have loads of problems and the tax laws themselves make life hard anyway.
https://www.democratsabroad.org/group/fbarfatca/march-2015-update-report-february-2015-fatca-door-knock
It’s occurred to me that if you’re looking for a “swat team” project, articles about the Bill C-51 protests might be a great place to get the word out to the public about the fact that Harper’s *already* removed the privacy rights of a significant, albeit invisible, percentage of the Canadian population. The nails are already in the lid of freedom’s coffin and C-51 could have the power to nail it shut.
@Neill @all
That DA report on the Washington DC tour by representatives of various organizations needs its own post. Treasury Dept’s Robert Stack’s response is further evidence that FATCA needs to be repealed, not tinkered with:
“…Our most important take-away was advice from Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury – International Affairs Robert Stack. The advice was that Treasury would have the authority to implement the Safe Harbor reform to FATCA, and no legislative instrument (a laborious and time-consuming amendment to the Act) would be required.
In order to motivate Treasury to create an Americans abroad Safe Harbor from FATCA reporting, however, we need to convince Treasury, and others we spoke to, that it would an effective policy adjustment. They want evidence that the financial account closures we are observing are attributable to FATCA. Also, they seek assurances from foreign financial institutions that they would end their “lock-out” of American customers if their financial accounts in their country of residence were excused from all FATCA reporting, (ie reporting by the taxpayer and reporting by the financial institution.)…”
The same country exemption just adds another layer of scrutiny for the banks, which only reinforces the need to avoid Americans altogether.
This article at the Washington Times was out earlier this week, and I know that several Brockers have been there already. I joined the fray late, and now this Mike guy will NOT leave me alone. Disqus keeps popping emails from this ‘guy’ (trying to be polite here) into my inbox. If anyone else feels like beating on someone today, now is your chance.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/mar/10/rand-paul-pushes-repeal-of-obama-tax-law-despised-/#comment-1908322969
@ WhiteKat
Either the WT or Disqus are acting up so badly today that I could not keep the comments page loaded properly — too much blinking, flashing, buffering and then back to square one. I had to up-arrow my way along the comments just to mark my place for each time I was forced to find my way back. I’m trying to comment but it has already blinked out once on me, mid-comment. I’ll try to take one stab at the Brock-defaming Mike and then call it a day. Great effort by you and all the other Brockers who chimed in.
@ WhiteKat
I finally got a comment to stay put at WT but sadly I was not able to shut Mike down — probably only diverted him from you to me. He writes, “I’m going to watch for your posts henceforth.” Oh, oh! Well I’m not going to waste any more time or effort or frustration (i.e. watching WT blink on and off) to try to reply to him. He might just be a sad old lonely compliance condor who is retired and fills the void in his life with provoking counter-commentary.
He also writes, “Still think the dumb Issac what’s-his-name thing is the kind of lame that gives lameness a bad name.” I think that’s something @Petros would be best to address.
@Embee, Wow, you have a new admirer who will be following you around on disqus from now on. I think you really charmed him with your, “poor animal in a leg-hold trap who must either gnaw off its own limb or face certain death by starvation” analogy.
@ WhiteKat
I was thinking more like I might have inadvertently made myself the prey of another Tommy Hunter type.
@WhiteKat perhaps time to disengage from conversing with your new admirer for self sanity.
Some will never be convinced. The fellow says he has a CPA. Tell him its all unconstitutional and against the Canadian Charter.
@JC, yes, disengaged earlier today. Besides he is Embee’s admirer, not mine. Lucky Em.
@ WhiteKat
I think Mike is your admirer too and that your feisty replies to him evoked this …”I’ve really grown to appreciate a perspective and been thanking you.” Anyway, it’s been 6 hours of silence from Mike so maybe he’s gone on to greener pastures. The Brock herd may have just dropped too many truth cow paddies in the FATCA field for him to want to wander there anymore. We’ll see.
@EmBee
Umm… maybe it was lock up time in the institution… hmm… He was going round & round trying to justify it… after a while… I just skipped his posts…
Mike wanted to know more about the Obama budget proposal that would allow accidentals to relinquish US citizenship, so I showed him where he can search amongst the “garbage” here for more info on it.
@Bubbles…….the problem IMO is that many homelanders still hold on to the exceptionalism idea and even amongst those that left there MAY be a lingering of it in the mind.
However, the Exceptionalism Index has been declining since maybe 1970……
I believe today that there are countries which are EQUALLY exceptional…..that is likely the mindset on IBS.
Once you put the USA on an equal playing field with lets say…..Canada, France, Ireland, Japan, S. Korea, Brazil and maybe twenty others……….CBT and non-mail order relinquishments collapses.
This was really driven home when I learned that I am Deemed Canadian.
The Government of Canada says that I may send in my request to become Un-Canadian through the post and because they imposed this on me, I do not need to pay any fee!!
Having to go to the US Consulate and be subject to interviews imposes VALUE on USC.
Requiring CBT on USC imposes VALUE on it.
To say that USC should now not be taxed worldwide is admitting that you are getting no intrinsic benefit and its therefor worthless.
@Bubbles et al……..
If its any consolation…….
Once the first leak starts in a dam, it is inevitable the dam will collapse.
CBT and FATCA will collapse, Mike is an example of the proof because you can see chinks in the armor in how he reacts.
What I do believe is not going away is the GATCA OECD model which essentially says you need to pay tax somewhere and that should be your residence.
GATCA is logical workable and non-conflicted.
FATCA/CBT is not logical, its conflicted and will not meet its objective.
But to get there………
1. More homelanders need to realize that the USA is not exceptional. With each election that happens because one side is sorely disappointed and they say because _____ was elected the country is going to hell and its over.
2. Other countries need to say the emperor has no clothes…..thats happening with China and the ADCS lawsuit.
Bubblebustin: I just created a post for discussion of the “Safe Harbor Rule”. Thanks for suggesting it!