Another article on famous entrepreneurs switching citizenship!
The Apple co-founder has resided for some time in Australia has recently stated that he is applying for citizenship and intends to remain there permanently:
The author of this article seems to think that he become the next big tech person to renounce US citizenship, which I would imagine would result in a huge media storm in about a year’s time should his name appear on a quarterly registrar. What do you think? Is he trying to get ready for FATCA?
Readers who live in Australia – How has FATCA been impacting your daily life or banking activities up to this point in time?
@Roger: Many of these problems can be blamed on the Triffin Dilemna.
“the country whose currency foreign nations wish to hold (the global reserve currency) must be willing to supply the world with an extra supply of its currency to fulfill world demand for this ‘reserve’ currency (foreign exchange reserves) and thus cause a trade deficit.”
@@Roger. Same as what we learned about Japan during the 1800’s during our history classes long ago. Little did I know we were talking about ourselves.
Found a better article about Wozniak’s application for residency:
http://www.policymic.com/articles/15358/apple-co-founder-steve-wozniak-seeks-australian-citizenship-as-the-us-may-lose-yet-another-billionaire
Also came across some spot on comments from Just Me & Eric on this article about the residency visa that Wozniak has most likely qualified under:
http://www.marketplace.org/topics/world/australia-looks-import-millionaire-investors
I really hope that he *DOESN’T* renounce because I’m sure it would cause a major scandal, possibly the point where they won’t allow renunciations anymore.
*@geeez, I don’t think Congress can stop renunciations since that is a constitutionally-guaranteed right. But it might trigger enforcement of the Reed Amendment to the Immigration Act of 1996 which allows the Secretary of theTreasury to blackist persons who renounce citizenship for tax avoidance reasons and ban them from ever entering US territory again for the rest of their lives.
That law has already been enacted and would require only action on the part of Treasury Secretary to be enforced.
*@Everyone I live in AUS and FATCA is on its way. The AUS treasury is conducting public submissions on the subject and I hope people have emailed letters to them. It closes 28 sept.
Very few people know about FATCA and the problems it will bring. There is about 100,000 Americans living in AUS so if FATCA comes in many people and there families will be affected.
At this stage I do not think that any Aussie has had any banking problems but that could change as we all know.
They could also significantly lower the exit tax threshold, or even make it a flat percent that you have pay regardless of your assets. I would expect them to do everything possible to make renunciation extremely painful and difficult, whilst at the same time still making it technically legal to do so – as Roger has pointed out.
@Roger: “But Brazil elected some corageous and capable leaders that turned things around.”
@Wellington: “I also believe that what you described concerning Brazil will one day happen in the US.”
Actually, Brazil elected a president who, on the first day of his term, basically declared a new currency for the country but did not allow the people to convert their money to the new currency (the president himself had most of his assets in gold). Protests and corruption scandals later, he was impeached. It was the vice president, who became president after the impeachment, and particularly his finance minister, who “turned things around” and ended hyperinflation. So they were capable leaders, but I wouldn’t say that it was the Brazilian people who elected them. (The finance minister was eventually elected president too, but after his main achievement.)
*I remember when it was announced that the Real (Royal) would replace the Cruzeiro, the Delfim Neto, who had been a long-time finance minister during the prior military gorvernments, commented to the effect that it was “a pretty common currency” to be called Royal.
But President Cardoso sure pulled it off and made it work.
Shadow. Wow.. you studied Brazilian history. Why didn’t you include the names??? It was Collor that was eventually impeached. Is this who you are referring to??? Because of the things you mentioned, people will never fully trust “currencies” to politicians (smart Brazilians!). When I first came here, savings rates were a SOLID 1,1%/monthly and yields on rentals were around 55%/value per month. Rents are now higher and yields are lower. Interest rates and savings rates are also lower. What this tells me is that no one trusts politicians.. smart Brazilians!
I don’t care if some is Swahili, American, Brazilian, Swiss, Canadian, whatever, the VAST majority of politicians are not going to help you. I’ve come to know a few exceptions, but they are very rare. the “machine” works against the common man no matter where we live.
*For whatever its worth you might want to read The Canadian Century by Brian Lee Crowley:
http://www.amazon.ca/The-Canadian-Century-Moving-Americas/dp/1554702976
For years Canada has lived in the shadow of the United States. No more. As
the authors argue, while the United States was busy precipitating a global
economic disaster, Canada was on a path that could lead it into an era of
unprecedented prosperity. It won’t be easy. We must be prepared to follow
through on reforms enacted and complete the work already begun. If so, Canada
will become the country that Laurier foretold, a land of work for all who want
it, of opportunity, investment, innovation and prosperity. Laurier said that the
twentieth century belonged to Canada. He was absolutely right; he was merely off
by 100 years.
*
There was also a big event at AEI in Washington, DC on Canadian budget policy in the 1990s. I should have mentioned something prior because if you went you probably could have met some real Canadian bigwigs or at least former bigwigs Paul Martin, Stockwell Day and Janice McKinnon.
http://www.aei.org/events/2012/09/18/fiscal-sanity-and-political-success-canada-proves-you-can-have-it-all/
*@geeez, I don’t think Congress can stop renunciations since that is a constitutionally-guaranteed right.
Roger, why didn’t you run for President? I truly believe that you, and maybe ONE handful of Resident-Citizens truly understand our situation,[and the trade-situation with the US ]. I think what you have been doing all of these years is extremely honorable. May God listen to the words!
Coincidentally, tonight, I had a talk with a Brazilian immigrant-“ette” (a lady) that returned here in the last few years. I had no problem saying that “I don’t blame you for leaving the US”. I come from a traditionally poor Southern area in the US. When I was younger, I couldn’t get a job as a grocery store bagger job or dishwasher job to-save-my-life. I have learned so much in Brazil about dealing with very different (THE OPPOSITE OF FAVORABLE!) circumstances. Sad thing is once I renounce, I’ll never be able to help any American, just my own kids. But who knows, maybe that’s how it always intended to be…. Keep it up Roger; eventually more people with common sense in their heads will take notice!
@upset, sorry to hear about Australia. At first, reading here at IBS, I had thought perhaps it might hold out along with Canada.
Don’t know much about Australia’s economy. What did they get in exchange (other than access to US financial market) – anything in particular they want from the US? Would they have leverage by concentrating on Singapore and the rest of Europe and Asia instead?
Excuse my ignorance of that part of the world.
*Geeez, I was liiving in Rio de Janeiro at the time President Nixon was being impeached. My boss, a retired Brazilian Army Coronel and myself were having lunch together at a restaurant on the Lagoa in Rio with one of his ex-military colleagues who was at that time the president of Embratel (I can’t recall his name). The latter remarked that an impeachment like Nixon’s would never happen in Brazil.
But just a few years later Collor was impeached. When that happened I could not help but recall that earlier conversation. Collor had done something akin to what some are suggesting in the US: Confiscated large amounts of the savings which the upper middle class had in the form of cash in bank deposits. Some people I had worked with were hit by this action and I can assure you they had no tender spot in their heart for Collor.
And what he did made things worse; not better. It sure took a lot of foresight and courage on the part of Cardoso to replace the worthless Cruzeiro with the solid Real. It changed the way finances in Brazil functioned by 180 degrees, and brought a virtual halt to the wild inflation that had plagued that nation for so many years that nobody could remember when it was not a part of everybody’s daily life. But Brazilian’s reacted, accepted it and it worked.
*badger and everyone
AUS has not implemented FATCA yet and not sure which way they will go (IGA or not)
The big four banks here (ANZ, WESPAC, COMMBANK, NAB ) want to continue to trade with US so my feeling is if it was not for the big four wanting to trade with the US then the AUS Government might no go ahead with FATCA – at least this is what I think anyway.