Cross posted from the Renounce U.S. Citizenship blog.
FEARBar – “Foreign Email Account Report” – #Offshore email reporting – coming to an informatio… https://t.co/uyufo1vZcf via @USCitizenAbroad
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 22, 2017
The above tweet references a post written four years ago in June of 2013. The post predicted that at some point the United States would require disclosure (in addition to FATCA (Form 8938) and FBAR (FinCen 114) and other forms) the email accounts used by Americans abroad.
That post concluded with my prediction:
The purpose of FBAR and FATCA is to …
Provide the U.S. with information that is outside of its jurisdiction. In other words, the U.S. has no legal right to the information. Therefore, by threatening “life altering” penalties, the U.S. forces its citizens to provide this information to the U.S. government.
If the contents of bank accounts is important, then the contents of an email account would be even more valuable.
You heard it here first:
The next information return that the U.S. will require is the:
“Foreign Email Account Report” – FEARBar for short!
Congress will (like FATCA) unknowingly pass the general legislation (slipped in as part of a Hiring Act) and authorize the IRS to specify the contents of the return. What an Orwellian World!
FEARBar coming to an information return near you!
2016 – An Obama administration initiative – inquiries about Social Media accounts as part of the ESTA program
U.S. government begins asking foreign travelers about social media https://t.co/xhIxhY8tnH via @politico – part of the ESTA program
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 22, 2017
What is going on? – The Readers Digest Version
At the risk of oversimplification (that’s the only way this can be understood):
1. Generally in order to enter the USA a visa (not the credit card) is required.
2. An exception to the visa requirements is given to citizens of those countries that are part of the “visa waiver program”. This means that to enter the United States they would simply show their passports without having to apply for a visa.
3. But, those who travel to the United States under the visa waiver program, are still required to get an “ESTA” (“Electronic System for Travel Authorization”) clearance. The “ESTA” clearance is managed online.
4. As part of the ESTA clearance process, applicants are “invited” to provide information about their Social Media handles. (Providing the information is NOT yet mandatory.)
5. This is of course for the purpose of preventing terrorism (the justification given and accepted for all the restrictions on the liberties of individuals). An explanation from the U.S. Government is here and includes the following Q and A’s of interest:
Question:
What was the additional question added to the ESTA application in October 2016?
DHS added the following optional question to ESTA and to Form I-94W:“Please enter information associated with your online presence – Provider/Platform- Social media identifier.”
The question is clearly marked as “optional” on the revised ESTA application. If an applicant does not answer the question or simply does not hold a social media account, the ESTA application can still be submitted without a negative interpretation or inference. No ESTA application is guaranteed approval, and an application can be denied for a variety of reasons.
Question:
How will CBP use my social media information collected through the additional questions being added to the ESTA application in October 2016?
Information found in social media will enhance the vetting process and may be used to review ESTA applications to validate legitimate travel, adjudicate VWP ineligibility waivers, and identify potential threats. If you choose to answer these questions and an initial vetting by CBP indicates possible information of concern or a need to further validate information, a highly trained CBP officer will have timely visibility of the publicly available information on those platforms, consistent with the privacy settings the applicant has chosen to adopt for those platforms, along with other information and tools CBP officers regularly use in the performance of their duties.
For example, social media may be used to support or corroborate a traveler’s application information, which will help facilitate legitimate travel by providing an additional means to adjudicate issues related to relevant questions about identity, occupation, previous travel, and other factors. It may also be used to identify potential deception or fraud. Social media may help distinguish individuals of additional concern from those individuals whose information substantiates their eligibility for travel.
DHS will handle social media identifiers in the same manner as other information collected through ESTA. DHS has documented these procedures in the updated ESTA System of Records Notice (SORN) and Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA), which are available on the DHS website (www.dhs.gov/privacy).
Question:
Do I have to answer the new questions if the provisions of the new Act do not apply to me?
Yes. All ESTA applicants must complete all non-optional fields on the ESTA application.The social media question is optional. The ESTA application will clearly inform the applicant that answering it is optional.
As they say, “The Trend Is Your Friend” …
Uncle Sam wants travelers to hand over social media accounts https://t.co/SRqdqL5dTN – CDN and Mexican citizens exempt bc no ESTA required
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 22, 2017
The United States of America is continuing it’s assault on privacy with the full consent of it citizens both in the USA and abroad. Absent a revolution, the Government will force the disclosure of more and more information from its citizens and those who wish to enter the United States.
The rise of social media has redefined both our understanding of what privacy is and our expectations of what should be private.
American citizens have gradually, incrementally, willingly (in the case of FATCA proponents GLADLY) surrendered their privacy to the Government. Email is a “treasure trove” of information for the Government. Because of the value of the information in email, Americans with “Foreign Email Accounts” will be required to surrender those accounts to the Government.
The surrendering of Social Media handles (which are in the public domain) will be seen as the first step.
As Ronald Reagan was fond of saying:
As Ronald Reagan said: "Freedom is only one generation away from extinction" https://t.co/RCc2rkLrsI
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 22, 2017
FEARBar (“Foreign Email Account Report) coming to an information return near you!
Is gmail foreign? Or does gmail anyway send the 1099-INF to the government so then tbe FearBar os just way of leveling the playing field.
If you come from a US “visa waiver” country, you need ESTA clearance before the US will let you in. They insist that it is not a visa, but only to save face. You have to apply for it in advance, it costs money, and it can be refused. ESTA is a visa in all but name.
Funny, because I just this minute finished this article, which also addresses the same issue of the surveillance state. Overall indeed the trend is towards the negation of privacy, always needing to be justified in the end by the fight against pedophilia, money laundering, terrorism and tax evasion. Permitted by populations who don’t know, don’t care, and think that, well “I have nothing to hide”. In the end FearBars, FBars, etc will no longer be necessary as all information is automatically divulged to the US government.
Title: “How the government can read your email”
Subtitle: “It’s a provision called Section 702, it’s not as limited as supporters say—and this year Congress has a chance to scale it back.”
http://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/06/22/section-702-surveillance-program-national-security-000463
And what if you don’t use social media, and don’t want to use social media?
Fred B
Here in Japan, all info automatically being sent to the gov. is already becoming reality. They call it “My Number”. To my knowledge, email and other social media are not (yet?) a part of this but everything else is; birth records, immigration/passport, deposits, remittances, employer/s, address, where your kids attend school, utility bills and at least to some degree credit card purchases. And now with the new anti conspiracy law, even more intrusive the surveillance state is soon to become.
It is a brave new world.
When the Bolshikiks took over our country, their regard for the prolatariat went ”bye,bye” They actually think they are better, smarter and that thier judgement is superior to yours.
What we are looking for mThe last time we had ”Taxation without representation”, we had a real shooting revolution.
What we did this time is elect a revolutionary president and the deep government that has been our dictators are ignoring the voice of the people,still. Does all this sound familiar? Where are the patrioit who will throw the Tea into the harbor.
They had better get on the Trump train and pass his programs . We won’t be so kind next time.
Sorry to say, but America is lost.
Neither party represents me. Neither party represents the people. Neither party wants to lead, when they would rather dictate.
I didn’t want a demagogue for a president. I wanted a leader. For once in my friggin’ life, it would’ve been nice to see a leader. Any leader. Instead, I was given a choice between two vile demagogues. I didn’t want that. So I went third party. Bam! Fucked over yet again!
I am tired. Very tired, of being sold on the idea of change, when it is all a big lie. I tried believing one more time, and was made a fool of yet again, and, was piled on by all sides for ‘wasting my vote’. I can’t help it. The system is rigged to the point where all you can do is waste your vote no matter who you vote for. Yet they call this democracy? Freedom? By who’s definition? You’re not even free when you leave it. Otherwise, sites such as this one, would have no need to exist.
Fuck it. They don’t want freedom. They think they want it, but in reality, they want to be dictated to. To have their dreams dashed by sycophants. It will always be a battle between socialists and fascists, and when the people decide to fight each other for ‘freedom’, it’s all under the beat of the drum that they’re willing to march to, and nothing more. They can’t conceive of other choices, because they’re told what to think, rather than be left to think for themselves. It is what it is. If people want to die for that, I will refuse to participate.
If you use debit cards, credit cards, ABM, cell phone, internet etc. but don’t use them during Muslim prayer times, guess what the government knows about you? This especially when the clocks are changed for Daylight Saving Time, but the Muslim prayer times are based on sunrise and sunset times.
….continued
I could vote either party, and I know damn well I’m wasting my vote to follow the groupthink. I vote outside the box, and know I’ll be pounced on by both sides for not following the groupthink. I don’t vote, and it’s, “You didn’t vote, so you don’t have the right to complain!”
I’m sorry, but that addled train of thought is just mentally sick. But, it’s also from the same place that is home to the Cook v. Tait decision, and it’s also from the same place that seeks to be punitive to expats that live outside the US, which we know is another example of not following the groupthink.
“If you choose to answer these questions and an initial vetting by CBP indicates possible information of concern or a need to further validate information, a highly trained CBP officer will have timely visibility of the publicly available information on those platforms, consistent with the privacy settings the applicant has chosen to adopt for those platforms, along with other information and tools CBP officers regularly use in the performance of their duties.”
The highly trained CBP officer will be every bit as highly competent as a highly trained IRS lawyer who files a brief in court complaining that a taxpayer obeyed instructions published by the IRS, along with having other information IRS agents regularly use in the performance of their duties such as not even obeying a statute which compels the IRS to investigate if a Form 1099 that the taxpayer submitted might happen to be actually true even if it differs from what IRS data entry clerk Monica Hernandez filed.
I wonder if they’ll catch any actual terrorists among all the collateral damage.
Wait a minute. Who issued visa renewals to dead hijackers? Would those be highly trained CBP officers? I guess I was wrong, they’re not every bit as highly competent as highly trained IRS lawyers.
“It may also be used to identify potential deception or fraud.”
So if a victim of Monica Hernandez’s frauds tries to go to court, CBP will block the victims? There’s nothing “potential” about what her cohorts continue to do.
“American citizens have gradually, incrementally, willingly (in the case of FATCA proponents GLADLY) surrendered their privacy to the Government.”
I don’t think so. FATCA proponents don’t surrender their privacy. FATCA proponents live in the US and they GLADLY willingly surrender the privacy of OTHER US citizens, those who don’t live in the US.
“ESTA is a visa in all but name.”
A tourist visa (needed for my wife to appear as required in Tax Court, before the IRS wrote a settlement for $0.00) costs US$160.00. ESTA isn’t quite the same as a visa. ESTA costs a lot less because it’s issued to people who are so much more able to afford it.
‘Here in Japan, all info automatically being sent to the gov. is already becoming reality. They call it “My Number”. To my knowledge, email and other social media are not (yet?) a part of this’
They have e-mail addresses of me and my wife. Hers is a foreign e-mail address, though you can only know that by knowing the company because ‘.com’ doesn’t specify a country that it’s associated with.
As far as I know, they do NOT have my email address. I do not recall having been “asked” to provide it and I have certainly never received any email from them.
They Do however, have had all info of one account as I have to provide it each year to get my tax refund.
@Tom Alciere
“If you use debit cards, credit cards, ABM, cell phone, internet etc. but don’t use them during Muslim prayer times, guess what the government knows about you? This especially when the clocks are changed for Daylight Saving Time, but the Muslim prayer times are based on sunrise and sunset times.”
Yes, and every criminal can know when you go on vacation via your utility bills. Once the “Smart meters” are installed, they will know when you leave for and return from wok each day.
Your employer will know if you visit a doctor and from which clinics, what type of medical issue you have.
Fun times ahead.
I suppose I will have to open a Facebook account and fill it with cat memes and other inoffensive things.
“Your employer will know if you visit a doctor and from which clinics, what type of medical issue you have. ”
They’ve known that for decades. Medical insurance companies send reports to employers.
‘As far as I know, they do NOT have my email address. I do not recall having been “asked” to provide it and I have certainly never received any email from them.’
I don’t recall for certain if the paper forms for My Number asked for e-mail addresses. Maybe if I hadn’t used their web site, maybe they wouldn’t have our e-mail addresses. I’m not sure.
I think I had to give my e-mail address to the FBAR web site, but it’s been a while and I don’t remember. I think I gave my wife’s e-mail address to the company that handles US tourist visa applications even though I’m the one who paid for her visa.
This means I need to plan ahead for my inevitable US visa application once I’ve completed the renunciation process (for which I’ve just taken the first steps; yay!). As Zla’od said, time to start populating my Facebook page with kittens in stars-and-stripes vests saying “Me no terrorist. Me cute.”
As for having a “foreign” e-mail address handy to put on the form, did you know that anyone can sign up for a free e-mail address at hellokitty.com? It fits the bill, being a Japanese company.
@ND
““Your employer will know if you visit a doctor and from which clinics, what type of medical issue you have. ”
They’ve known that for decades. Medical insurance companies send reports to employers.”
Here in Japan? Yes. Your manager knows your body weight and body mass index and every other detail examed, explored, prodded, etc learned from your periodic medical check ups, often undertaked right there in your office building.
In the States, I’m not so sure. There are, rather were, laws preventing disclosure of personal information to third parties without consent. Of course, it could be that by filing a claim one must also sign the consent form to receive insurance payment.
For each employer, I have had to file actual paper, paper work for My Number. The latest has given me the option of doing the same or doing so electronically. Thanks for the heads up. Think I will go the paper route.
My spouse wants to go on an overseas trip to visit a sibling. The fastest and least expensive route is through the US, changing planes there. I had hoped that as we would just be changing planes and not actually entering the country that they would not need an ESTA and our chidren could travel without getting US passports. Nope. Even though we would not be allowed out of the internationl terminal, these are needed. My spouse does not agree that this is cause to add hours of flight time and thousands of dollars to the cost of the trip.
When I mentioned that my wife has a foreign e-mail address, I meant foreign to where we live. hellokitty.com sounds domestic, being a Japanese company, but it’s registered in Europe and I can’t tell which country, but it’s administered by IBM in the US.
@ND
The half dozen or so My Number forms I have thus filled out just needed photo copies of my My Number card and a photo ID. Do not remember even needing to sign them. Thankfully, I have a Japanese DL so I did not have to use my Alien Registration card. It will all be connected in the near future, work on this is already underway, but no need to make it easier for them. May give me a little extra time. One can hope.
“They’ve known that for decades. Medical insurance companies send reports to employers.”
‘Here in Japan? Yes.’
It sounded like you were saying employers will get it from My Number registration, but employers have already been getting it, as you say you know, yes here in Japan.
Ah.
I was speaking in general terms and using Japan as an example. Yeah, here the employer knows everything about you, medically. Perhaps more than you do. Not all information is given to the actual patient, rather to their family. I would not be surprised if the same is true with employers.
“The fastest and least expensive route is through the US, changing planes there. I had hoped that as we would just be changing planes and not actually entering the country that they would not need an ESTA and our chidren could travel without getting US passports. Nope.”
Your spouse’s kids were born in your spouse’s country and their country’s passports don’t show any US indicia, right?
If anyone asks whether they’re US citizens, lie.
US Supreme Court sides with Bill Clinton, IRS appeals officers, and Department of Justice lawyers who commit perjury: Lying is OK.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/supreme-court-sides-with-serb-who-lied-during-naturalization-process/2017/06/22/a05363a0-576d-11e7-b38e-35fd8e0c288f_story.html?utm_term=.710460c6bf52