Definition of U.S. person: Any person or entity that will have an effect on American commerce

9 thoughts on “Definition of U.S. person: Any person or entity that will have an effect on American commerce”

1. If this is true then this is just an example of how ludicrous American logic is.  This definition is so broad as to be essentially meaningless because it means that “anyone” is deemed a U.S. person by virtue of participation in “world financial markets”. 

   This though is another example of the lack of logic that is at the root of why the IRS refuses to exercise any of its discretionary authority with regards to applying U.S. tax law to those who live abroad. 

   What the U.S. Congress is doing is to make everyone in the world a quasi citizen of the U.S. whether they want to be or not.  The U.S. politicians are living in a fantasy land and are only driving everyone to reduce or eliminate any contact with them.  It is U.S. imperialism via regulation.

2. I haven’t been able to find the latest on the issue that the news is referencing, due to time constraints, but the following may be the proposal from June 29, 2012:

   The Commission proposes to interpret the term “U.S. person” by reference
   to the extent to which swap activities or transactions involving one or
   more such person has relevant effect on U.S. commerce. The
   interpretation would help determine, for example, whether foreign
   entities engaging in swap dealing transactions with “U.S. persons” in
   excess of the de minimis level would be required to register and be
   regulated as swap dealers. Additionally, the interpretation would help
   to determine the level of U.S. interest for purposes of analyzing and
   applying principles of international comity when considering the extent
   to which U.S. transaction level requirements should apply to swap
   transactions.
   http://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/pr6293-12

   I’m unfamiliar with swap activities.  Maybe that will be my next homework assignment.  🙂

3. *Idiocy.

   Goodbye Boeing – Hello Airbus.

   Goodbye US registered ships and planes and Hello Cayman registered ones.

   Goodbye Disney and Hollywood and Hello a new world of entertainment.

   Goodbye Wall Street and Hello Hong Kong, London, Cayman, Toronto, Zurich and elsewhere around the Globe.

   Goodbye US Treasuries and Hello new investments.

   Goodbye Us Exports and Hello new Manufacturers in Korea, China, South America, India, Europe and (coming soon) Africa.

   Goodbye US patented products and Hello new ideas and innovation.

   What really burns me is that I love the USA and hate seeing it self destruct like this.

4. It’s the US’s sandbox and we get to play in it? For what do I owe this debt of gratitude?

5. Letters Pour in From Around the World on Swap Rules

   How does the rest of the world feel about the U.S. Commodity Futures
   Trading Commission’s pending swaps regulations? Summed up in two words:
   not happy.

   As August drew to a close, a flurry of public comments
   from regulators and industry groups from across the globe were
   submitted to the CFTC over Dodd-Frank Act mandates that have led to
   rulemaking that pertains to derivatives trades…

   http://www.complianceweek.com/letters-pour-in-from-around-the-world-on-swap-rules/article/257039/

6. I just found something interesting. The Fair Tax Act, which would eliminate income and employment taxes and replace them with a national sales tax, has the following international aspects:
   1. The withholding of tax on income of nonresident aliens still exists, and becomes the same rate as the national sales tax;
   2. To qualify for the rebate that offsets the sales tax for the poor, one must be a legal resident of the US.

   Therefore, Americans abroad would not benefit from the rebate (which makes sense as they would not pay the US sales tax), but they would not be subject to withholding tax on US income either, unlike nonresidents who are not US citizens. It seems like an incentive to keep US citizenship if residing abroad, a complete opposite of the current system. Was this unintended, or do the congressmen who are sponsoring this bill care about Americans abroad?

   The act would also repeal reporting requirements and FATCA as it erases most of the Internal Revenue Code. It does not mention the FBAR, but the IRS would be abolished so there would be no enforcement on its penalties.

7. The Fair Tax would also eliminate every congress critter’s ability to

   • reward their friends and donors with carve outs and preferential treatment,
   • punish those who they don’t like, or who fail to donate enough to their campaigns, with fines disguised as taxes, and
   • grandstand about “closing loopholes” or “going after” whomever is the hate figure du jour.

   They can’t give these up.  They’re both addicted and dependent.  The Fair Tax act has no chance of passing.  It was first introduced 13 years ago, and has been “in committee” ever since.  That fact alone probably tells you as much as you need to know about it!

8. My request to my representation for a letter of recommendation to renounce my US citizenship is now official:

   http://expatami.wordpress.com/2012/08/31/letter-to-staff-of-congressman-vern-buchanan-requesting-recommendation-to-renounce-us-citizenship/

9. @Watcher, I know that the Fair Tax Act has a very, very small change of passing even the committee. I’m not even sure if this act is a good idea. I was just wondering if the congressmen who support it (quite a few) thought about Americans abroad, given how it would benefit them. If they did, it means that these congressmen would probably support a bill to abolish citizenship-based taxation.