In the five season series Breaking Bad, Walter White earns an untold amount of cash through the production of blue crystal methamphetamine. In order to launder this money, his wife, Skylar, insists that they buy a car wash, through which she produces false invoices for cash sales. But in this scene Skylar shows Walt the cash that he’s brought to the car wash. She has moved it to a storage locker. She says she can’t launder this much money–not in ten years or even a lifetime.

What Skylar could not do through a car wash with less than a million dollars of gross revenue per year, the IRS has made possible through Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program. First, one transfers the funds to an offshore account. Second, one enters the voluntary disclosure program and pays all back taxes, fines, interest and a in-lieu of FBAR fine of 27.5%. The money is now freshly laundered and can pay for Walter White’s childrens’ education, the legal costs for the defense of Skylar against criminal charges, and his extended family’s escalating health care expenses.

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Canada AM: US tax backlash

October 29th post at Janglo: Foreigners in Israel find themselves ensnared in U.S. tax crackdown,Full Story (Haaretz)

…He was asked to sign a declaration that the account and all the money in it had been reported to the tax authorities in his home country and he had paid everything that was due on it.

The man refused and then came the next surprise: The bank refused to let him withdraw his money. He explained that he didn’t speak Hebrew and wanted the declaration to be read and translated by a lawyer. He reminded the bankers that he was a client of long standing and had been told when he opened his account that he would not be asked questions like that. It was all to no avail.
…

Related (from another Brocker):

I remember reading a lawyer wrote that all the g7 wanted fatca type reporting…the u.s took the lead…the rest will follow..the Israel has fatca type arrangements with Europe…probably the igas crush everything related to privacy so it’s easier now.

Here is the fax of Bank Hapolaim, an Israeli bank, requiring Canadians and EU member residents and/or immigrants (or CFCs) from those locations sign away their rights similar to US citizens: Israeli Bank(s) Declaration — shall apply with respect to any existing Account and any future Account, if relevant

Telling your Congressman or your media contact that you are “Collateral Damage” has no effect. Your Congressman doesn’t give a sh_t—because you are not collateral damage—you are the target.

This article is a cross post from: http://samuelclemmons.wordpress.com/2014/10/27/the-real-intent-of-fatca-you-are-not-collateral-damage-you-are-the-target/

The term “collateral damage” shows up in all the articles, all the pleas to Congress, and in the Talking Points of Lemmings Abroad. It’s not really a damaging label—unless you believe it to be true and don’t plan otherwise.

Let’s stop talking about FATCA’s “collateral damage” and start discussing real intent.  FATCA is the enforcement tool to collect IRS taxes and penalties from non US residents receiving no standard government services (schools, roads, education, or social welfare).  FATCA talking points contradict the administration’s own statements upon FATCA intentions.

FATCA funded the 2010 Jobs for Mainstreet Act–a domestic jobs bill. It purports to collect $8.5-$8.9 billion of tax and penalties over ten years, by identifying previously-undertaxed US citizens overseas. It demands the world’s banks to aggressively identify their residents who are US citizens, forwarding their identities to the IRS for taxation and penalties.

FATCA aggressively enforces the US’ globally-unique taxation system, which uniquely taxes-up its non-resident US citizens to the highest of the tax rates of their residence country or US.  This includes any previously under-taxed non-US retirement products, unemployment benefits, home sale gains, and anything above $95,000 earned in countries like UAE (UAE’s high corporate tax eliminates personal tax).

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The Internal Revenue Service agents did not accuse Ms. Hinders of money laundering or cheating on her taxes — in fact, she has not been charged with any crime. Instead, the money was seized solely because she had deposited less than $10,000 at a time, which they viewed as an attempt to avoid triggering a required government report.

“How can this happen?” Ms. Hinders said in a recent interview. “Who takes your money before they prove that you’ve done anything wrong with it?”

The federal government does.

Law Lets I.R.S. Seize Accounts on Suspicion, No Crime Required

Does anyone except Jack Townsend still doubt that the IRS is a criminal organization?

Hat Tip: Zero Hedge

Has anyone heard anything new on Alterna being exempt from FATCA reporting?

SwedishPublic Radio (SR) has sense of humor!

They created tag #FATCAINFO to list the reciprocal data you think USA should xchange for Swedish FATCA data.

What US data would Sweden really be interested in?

Use your imagination—what could that tax haven Sweden use for FATCA reciprocity that they could possibly use?

You can’t understand it, but the Swedish national radio satire program requested it here:

http://sverigesradio.se/topsy/ljudfil/5116840.mp3

(No blocks, you can send serious sh_t, too)

Tweet away—humor is more powerful than seriousness!