I missed this story on Wednesday, and have not commented on it yet. It was broadcast on NPR stations, by MarketPlace Radio.
It’s an oft-told political joke: “If things don’t go my way, I’m moving to Canada.” You hear it every election, but do people actually mean it when they say it?
There’s a chance Hannah Frame might be one of those people. She’ll be watching the upcoming election very closely from her dorm at Kalamazoo College in Michigan, as the outcome could have major ramifications for the rest of her life.
I thought some of you Canadians might want to use this opportunity to inform Market Place Radio about the “other” realities they did not mention. I notice, yet again, there is not a FATCA in the story or anything related to the issues of US Citizenship taxation. It is written from the perspective of difficulties with Canadian immigration, the legal issues and associated expenses of those hurtles. So, a one sided and narrow perspective. That said, here is the opportunity to educate a wider audience of the other difficulties Hannah Frame has never considered.
Update: I did decide to post a comment: Here is what I said. Join in with your advice at Market Place. I am sure Hannah would love to hear from you.
Well, Hannah, I wish you well. Just one little additional complication this story did not mention.
US Citizenship Taxation.
You will still be subject to filing your 1040s, FBAR and FATCA forms, and meeting all the requirements of Homeland Taxation, other than now it will be much more complicated and expensive to do from another Country. This will be in addition to the higher Canadian taxes you will be paying. A US citizen, uniquely in the world, is required to do both. You will probably need the advice of an International Tax Practitioner.
There are many Canadians right now, that are trying to shed their US Citizenship, so that they no longer are subject to the rules, forms, and penalties associated with failure. So, my advice would be, for you to start your life abroad compliant, and then you can decide later what you want to do about it, if anything. Your life will definitely be more complicated, and expensive than a Homelander, but maybe that is OK for you. It isn’t for some.
I would suggest, that you might want to review this amusing, but informative video on youtube entitled:
The Life of the American Abroad. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfWk6yRdwMo
Yes, Canada is consider ‘abroad and Offshore’, and as such if you fail the compliance test, the IRS is looking for you. FATCA is in your future, and Canadian banks may be required to report your account data to the IRS. If you have never heard the FWHAT? words, FATCA and FBAR, start your research now. Do not be surprised later.
Cheers and good luck with your new life. I would take PK’s advice to heart. Move to California. The US really does not want you to live abroad!
Here is some related tax-jihad vocabulary from a Salon hit piece on a switch to territorial taxation system:
Chief among these is a proposal to switch to a territorial system
under which corporate foreign earnings would be permanently exempted
(instead of being taxed when they are returned to America)”
Check out this tax-jihad vocabulary:
– filthy rich, tax-dodging hypocrites
– “accelerated depreciation” rules that allow companies to turbo-charge tax deductions in the early years of the life of an asset.
– illegal tax shelter swindle dubbed “ Son of Boss .” The scam involved setting up a series of complex paper transactions between company subsidiaries
– paid “less than nothing” in federal income taxes
– Olympic class accounting acrobatics to avoid paying taxes
– CEOs might want to take a hard look at their responsibility for causing the deficit and this terrible recession
Hannah should see if she can become a mail-order bride, and that would help her overcome the immigration hurdles and the $1500 fee. She seems to want to have free health care, and this way she could have a entire life for free from some rich and homely Canadian dude.
Frankly, she is a little stupid: doesn’t she know that the reason people are renouncing their US citizenship is more because of the Democrats and extra-territorial taxation, FBAR enforcement and FATCA, and not as much as because of the party of Romney. Besides, Mark Cuban says that Romney is really a democrat in any case (see: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-cuban/romney-election-2012_b_2020584.html ).
In any case, I’m not falling for this piece since the last one I was told was a belated poisson d’avril. It is too unbelievable that an American co-ed would want to leave the best country in the world to go north to backward Canada. Although, may be she has watched too many Michael Moore films, and believed them.
@Petros…
I will be more charitable and just say she is uneducated in international matters, and pretty impractical when thinking that she can easily move. She probably thinks going to Canada is like moving to California. Hell, she might think it is just another territory of America. That is why I thought I might try the education route via the comments and remove some of the fanciful thoughts.
I am pretty sure she will be reading them, as once your name is mentioned on air or in print, you are naturally curious to see what others are saying.
So hope some others will make the effort to say something in a positive manner to remove her delusions of life in Canada. Canada is not “freebie heaven”. 🙂
@ConfederateH. Thanks for the link, and copies of the appropriate statements. Do you think they are wearing their bias on their sleeve? Is it even worth trying to comment in a manner that would get them to consider another view? Probably not.