Saturday evening we enjoyed the annual fund raising dinner of the Georgetown Rotary Club of which my father-in-law is a member.  Before the meal, we sang the Canadian national anthem.  I found myself fighting back tears.  The Harper’s government signed an Inter-governmental agreement to betray banking information to the IRS of US citizens living in Canada, thus enforcing FATCA, an extraterritorial law made in Washington–a law which claims global jurisdiction over bank account information.  Since many of these so-called “US citizens” are Canadians living on Canadian soil, they are part of that collective nation we call “Canada”. “True patriot love in all thy sons command!” Yet clearly, the current elected leaders have cynical intentions: money is more important to them than protecting Canada as “the True North strong and free”.  I sang with a heavy not a “glowing heart” as I see Canada’s sovereignty weaken and her freedom diminish.

“From far and wide”, means that Canada consists of every citizen who lives within the borders of this country, from Atlantic to Pacific.

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I often find myself in discussion with some Homelanders and Obama supporters about whether US citizenship-based taxation is a human rights abuse.  Below is my argument, first published August 21, 2012, to say that it is unfair. Now I argue that with the implementation of FATCA, the USA has become a serial human rights abuser.  Clearly, most people of reasonable conscience accept these kinds of arguments.  Even yesterday, I manage to get a chuckle out of an AP reporter who was asking for my story. I mentioned my birth in Chicago, Illinois, and moving as a baby to Alaska. Off the cuff, I said, “Yet Illinois isn’t chasing me around the globe expecting me to pay state income tax.” That’s because once you leave a state, you can no longer benefit from the proceeds of taxation. It is a no brainer. Yet it is not self-evident to Congress and the IRS, which are pursuing US expats across the globe with FATCA regulations in order to make them pay taxes for the benefit of Homelanders.

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This Could Destroy the Lives of Millions

Another Brocker in the news.

The inter-governmental agreement (IGA) between the USA and Canada which will enforce FATCA in Canada has an interesting line on page 27:

With respect to New Individual Accounts not described in paragraph A of this section, upon account opening (or within 90 days after the end of the calendar year in which the account ceases to be described in paragraph A of this section), the Reporting Canadian Financial Institution must obtain a self-certification, which may be part of the account opening documentation, that allows the Reporting Canadian Financial Institution to determine whether the Account Holder is resident in the United States for tax purposes (for this purpose, a U.S. citizen is considered to be resident in the United States for tax purposes, even if the Account Holder is also a tax resident of another jurisdiction) Continue reading →

Some of us have been invited to appear on Thatchannel‘s Liquid Lunch today.  Expect us at about 1:30 pm on the live stream.

UPDATE: Gwen, Peter Dunn and Tricia Moon spoke with Hugh Reilly and Sandra Kyrzakos. Here is the actual video, the actual segment begins at 1:27:50

John Richardson and Bahman Yazdanfar discuss citizenship issues with Peter W. Dunn and Trica Moon.  The topic at hand is:

“Should non-citizens be able to vote in 2014 Toronto municipal election?”

Don’t be too surprised when FBAR, FATCA and/or citizenship based taxation becomes part of the discussion.

The Inter-Governental Agreement between Canada and the United States (IGA), which will implement FATCA regulations in Canada, is sufficiently complex that it will take some time before Canadians come to grips with what rights our government has traded away and what safeguards are in place to protect, hopefully, the majority of us. While I am completely against the CRA trading the private banking account information of Canadian residents and citizens with the hostile government to our south run by President Obama and his band of merry thieves, who steal from the poor to give to the rich, I do believe that the vast majority of Canadian residents can protect themselves. We now have not only to navigate the treacherous waters of IRS threatening to fine us at multiples of our total financial wealth (up to 380%), we must also know how to deal with bank’s inquisition which will begin to question all Canadians: “Are you or have you ever been a US person?”

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The Windsor Star objects to the Harper government’s FATCA agreement with the United States.  Here is the money quote showing how the Tory government actually admits to capitulation:

In fact, when the Tax Compliance Act first surfaced just over two years ago, federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty was one of the strongest critics, pointing out that the proposal “has far-reaching extraterritorial implications. It would turn Canadian banks into extensions of the IRS and would raise significant privacy concerns for Canadians.”

What happened to “never surrender”?

The Star’s view: Ottawa shouldn’t be in bed with the IRS

Facebook comments are welcome at the Windsor Star.

Mr. Harper will expose innocent Canadians to the capricious and evil treatment of the IRS.  Just how bad is it?  The IRS is a criminal organization that regularly abuses elderly people, just like our beleaguered Canadian citizens whose bank accounts will now be exposed to the IRS under FATCA. Read what one insider has to say.  Powerline blog reproduces a letter by Bill Henck an IRS insider (emphasis mine):

Bill Henck: Inside the IRS

I have been an attorney in the IRS Office of Chief Counsel for over 26 years. Over a number of years, I have attempted, largely unsuccessfully, to alert the public to abuse within the IRS. One of my kids suggested that I contact a blog and Power Line has graciously agreed to publish this account.

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