Petros
Peter W. Dunn (Petros) grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, and is a scholar of Early Christianity. While attending school in Vancouver, Canada, he married a Canadian girl. Afterwards, he studied in England and Switzerland. After finishing his studies, he settled in Ontario. He has taught theology at the undergraduate and graduate levels both in Canada and in Africa.
As a result of Heroes Earnings Assistance and Tax Act, he decided to become a Canadian citizen in 2010. He did so on 28 February 2011 and relinquished his US citizenship on the same day. He has decided to complete his expatriation forms but not to file FBAR. While most people have chosen to use aliases for their online discussion, Peter has decided come out in the open about this issue.
Peter blogs at the Righteous Investor and Acta Pauli.
He has written some published articles on FBAR, FATCA and renunciation of US citizenship:
(1) When government turns predator with Monty Pelerin
(2) FATCA: A ticking time bomb for the Economy
(3) No Civilized Country Would Ever Banish Eduardo Saverin
Kristiaan Yeo interviewed Peter for CCTV:
Jon McComb interviewed Peter Dunn on the World Today.
Atossa Abrahamian interviewed Peter W. Dunn for her Reuters article, Tax time pushes some Americans to take a hike.
Peter spoke with ABC News writer, Enjoli Francis: Facebook’s Eduardo Saverin Joins Americans Renouncing Citizenship.
Peter spoke with Canada’s Barrie McKenna, Ottawa, U.S. negotiating change to tax reporting. Toronto Star’s Michael Lewis cited Petros in his article, Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin’s taxing connection to U.S.-Canadian dual citizens.
Dow Jones columnist, Al Lewis featured Peter Dunn in his article: Tax man makes it hard to be an American / Commentary: Tough IRS rules hit the little guys hard.
Emma Elliot Freire spoke with Peter Dunn for her article: Toxic Citizen: The Misery Of Being An American Abroad.
Living abroad isn’t as romantic as you might think.
He should not be confused with Pete the Planner, who is the younger, better looking Peter Dunn who also has an investment blog but unlike Petros, is nice enough looking that he can go on television. Petros has a face for radio (see above–he’s the less furry one in the picture).
At his own blog and here he’s written several useful posts:
- Renunciation of US citizenship: On avoiding the new $450 renunciation fee
- My April 7 visit to the US consulate
- Is the taxation of US citizens abroad constitutional?
- Pillaging one person at a time: why I’m coming out in the open with my fight against the IRS
- Presidential Pardon as constitutional solution to FBAR madness
- Fourth Amendment: FBAR equivalent to general warrant
- Fifth Amendment: FBAR substantial hazard
- Fifth Amendment: two cases
- Fifth Amendment: Miranda Rights and FBAR
- Sixth Amendment: No fair trial possible for expats
- Eighth Amendment: The IRS is bluffing, bad faith in OVDI
- Ignorance is an excuse in the case of FBAR
He is married with 4 or 5 cats.
Peter spoke at the FACTA Fact Finding Forum on December 15, 2012:
Listen to Peter Dunn’s interview with Pete the Planner:
Hi,
I have read through «renunciation & relinquisment of US citizenship: discussion thread» from january 13 2012 to feb 9th 2012.
In short my case is as follows: both my parents were canadians and living in Canada. Because they lived near the american borders, my mother gave birth to me on the american side of the border. Came back to Canada on day 4 of my birth. Some 30 years later I asked for my canadian citizenship and got it. It is a white paper date n/a and got the plastic card afterwards dated year 1982.
In august 1994 I got a US SSN and was issued my american passport on oct 1994. I have never used it and it is well past due. I am still a fed employee and my last oath was sept 13, 1999. I’ve never filed US income tax reports and have just recently came aware of all this nightmare FBAR and the works. I never go in the US (last time in 2008 for 3 days) and even if I have a few reletives there, we don’t visit.
Have I committed an expatriating act or not according the the above dates ?
If so, should I then immediately take a «rendez-vous» at the US consulate and relinquish ou renunciate ?
Thank you.
I’m I writing at the right place for the above question ?
Hi Greenwood: Well this is more like my vanity page. The following thread would be better:
http://isaacbrocksociety.com/2012/01/13/ask-your-questions-about-renunciation-and-relinquishment-of-united-states-citizenship-discussion-thread/
But also look at the side by where we have links on relinquishment/renunciation under “Our Resources”
Thanks.
I’ve posted the same short story on«ask your questions about renunciation…»
I would like an answer if possible today or tomorrow.
Will be back in a few minutes. Must put my cats to bed…
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Hi Peter,
I was wondering if you would like to post the following experience from last week to this blog, or if you would rather prefer if I posted it myself:
http://expatami.wordpress.com/2012/06/10/you-are-an-invalid-resident/
Looking forward to hearing what you think.
SwissPinoy
PS. Since the switch to a ca domain, I haven’t been getting the email updates anymore.
@Swisspinoy,
You can sign up for the notices on this .ca I signed up. Waited until they were working, and then unsubscribed to the .com. The notices are working fine.
Also, you can sign up for follow up comments too at the bottom of the “Leave a Reply” text box.
I am getting a lot of emails from people’s servers because messages are bouncing. I can’t explain it. I wonder if people are actually all receiving their subscriptions as they are supposed to.
Peter;
Tertia is an extremely tough competitor to best in the photogenics department, but that’s no reason to stick to radio!
Dear Peter,
On Wednesday I flew from Newark Airport to Beijing on United Airlines. After we (the passengers) showed our boarding passes and before we boarded the plane, passengers were being stopped randomly and asked how much money they were taking out of the country. One Chinese woman looked confused, but the questioning continued. Fortunately, I was not stopped.
Sincerely, S
I’ve seen this kind of random check even on flights out of Canada, if memory serves. One time I admitted having about 90,000 CFA (Central African Francs). That caused some interest. Divide it by 400 to get Canadian.
The prohibition about carry currency without reporting it is in my opinion not in keeping with human rights. Clearly governments are control freaks.
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*Petros, can you start a separate discussion thread with this post? Thanks.
US Tax Policies Open A Whole CANada of WORMs* for US Consulates
US expatriates are finding that current IRS and Treasury Department reporting requirements and pending FATCA rules have become unaffordable in time, accountant fees, and invasion of privacy, especially since almost all of us would end up owing the US no tax even if we accepted their jurisdiction. If we ever want to visit the US again, we have no recourse but to apply for Certificates of Loss of Nationality (CLNs) to document that we are no longer US citizens. I call us the WithOut Recourse Majority* of expatriates.
Most of us are living in Canada but there are thousands of others throughout the world. As a result, US consulates will have to deal with tens or hundreds of thousands of requests for CLNs in the next few years unless US policies change, and the consulates simply aren’t equipped to handle applications in such numbers. Something’s gotta give. What will it be?
Petros:
Here’s another mention of Peter Dunn
http://tropicaldaily.com/offshore/facta-alert-how-renouncing-your-american-citizenship-might-not-free-you-of-filing/
Hi! We would love for you to join us for a HuffPost Live conversation on expats TOMORROW (Tuesday) around 7pm EST via webcam- if you can join please email me with your phone number! Hope to hear from you and thanks so much. 🙂
Hi Petros,
If you join, please don’t forget to mention this affects immigrants as well 😉
Thanks!
Petros, how would one go about contacting a member directly? I have managed to get my (UK) MP interested enough in this that he would like to hear from someone who has been badly affected by US citizenship based taxation and upcoming FATCA/IGA. I don’t qualify — disentangled four or five years ago — but monalisa1776 might well be a sympathetic case. If she can be persuaded, that is. I don’t know how to get in touch directly, though. The problem is of course compounded by my also hiding behind an alias…
Petros,
A couple of days ago I noted your e-mail address or thought I did and now cannot find it.
I have viewed you speak out on the FATCA forum held in December 2012.
My hat is off to you!
I would also like to become a member of the Isaac Brock Sociey but not sure how to do that.
I am under extreme pressue as to what to do with this whole IRS?Fatca situaion.
For me it looks like if I comply I am committing financial suicide and if I don’t then I wait for them to come and shoot me. But, of course, there is noone to turn to legal or otherwise to get any answers.
I am not sure if you give out your e-mail address so I will keep searching for it and if you do I would appreciate the opportunity to e-mail you
Kindest Regads,
Tortured
@ Tortured
Welcome! You’ll get lots of empathy at Brock and hopefully you’ll learn enough and get enough “off the record” advice (we’re not lawyers and don’t pretend to be) to come up with a plan, even if it is simply “wait and see”. Here’s an e-mail address for Petros …
petros@isaacbrocksociety.ca
@ tortured I tried to contact you with the email address that you used to make a comment, but it came back to me. Please make a comment with your real email address.
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