As reports flood in from stalwart Brockers — CLNs arrive for Peg11 and recalcitrantexpat, Don Pomodoro gets a second appointment and renounces — and advanced backstories trickle in from lurkers and indirect reporters, it is still the case that almost all are still somewhere in the middle. Few share the absolute closure of schubert1975.
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Category Archives: Issues regarding US persons abroad
Finally It’s Here
Well I got my CLN today. My passport was of course with it but it wasn’t punched full of holes. There was not one additional hole that was added. The only alteration that I could see was the note regarding the day of my expatriation.
My CLN now rests comfortably inside my bank’s safety deposit box. I did make a copy before hand though and had it witnessed by a Commissionaire of Oaths.
Canada Day, War of 1812, and FATCA
Further to the suggestion Blaze posted on another thread, I sent an early-Canada-Day email to the PM, my MP, Thomas Mulcair, and Ministers Flaherty, Baird, and Kenney. I won’t reproduce my own text here, because I don’t want the wording to become a template and lose effectiveness. I sent it a bit early, partly to match the Bicentennial of the declaration of war in 1812 (on June 18) and also because I won’t be able to send it on July 1. I thought maybe I’d start a new thread on this, for people to post any replies or experiences on this subject. It would get lost on the other thread.
I’ve had two replies so far. Email from the PMO thanking me for expressing my concern and telling me they’re forwarding it to Flaherty’s office (I sent the emails separately so no one knows the same email went separately to each of them).
My MP’s office sent the following short reply, for what it’s worth:
Thank you for your e-mail of June 17 sharing your thoughts on Canada Day, the War of 1812 and FATCA. Please be assured that Mr. Dewar and his colleagues continuing to work on this issue.
Not sure how much attention or traction these emails will get during the summer recess, but worth a shot anyway. The interesting one will be the reply from Flaherty, which will likely be drafted by or in consultation with Ministry of Finance officials who aren’t in recess. The reply may just be another variation on the theme of the standard letter (that CARP got recently) or maybe there will be something more. At minimum, we’ll either get confirmation that nothing is settled yet, or that something is and what it is. Will let you know what I get from Flaherty. No confidence that I’ll hear squat from Baird or Kenney, but I remain open to pleasant surprises.
The Best Investment in U.S. Defense is to Stop FATCA and Start respecting the sovereigny of other nations
- Note this is a post that I wrote December of 2011. I have cross posted it from RenounceUScitizenship. It dovetails with some of the recent posts published here about the costs and foolishness of waging war on the sovereignty of other countries.
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“What do the recent G20 discussions and the IRS’ enforcement of foreign asset reporting have in common and why should “dual nationals” be concerned?”
From: Fear Factors: Dual Nationals and the IRS
A recent G20 summit was held in Toronto, Canada. The internet is a great thing – gives you instant access to the newspapers in any part of the world. As a result I was able to read both the local commentary and international commentary. The local (Toronto) newspapers were marveling at the extent and cost of the security offered to these “great leaders”. A friend commented to me that:
“If they were such great leaders, then they wouldn’t need that kind of security.” Continue reading
June 18, 1812 – June 18, 2012: U.S. citizenship-based taxation, and other ways to wage war at a profit!
Sorry I forgot to put his up yesterday – cross posted from RenounceUScitizenship
“War is failure”
– Once heard Colin Powell requote this truism
June 18/12 – 200 years ago today the US attacked Canada in the #warof1812 – http://t.co/O3MTCiH8 Laxers's perspective http://t.co/qg4SmeSd
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 18, 2012
Today is an important day in Canadian History. Exactly 200 years ago today, the United States under President Madison attacked what was then British North America. The outcome of the war depends on which country’s historians you listen to. But what is clear is that – after three years, the United States failed in its military invasion of it’s British neighbour to the North. In other words U.S. expansion stopped at the 49th parallel – making the existence of Canada possible. Continue reading
What is the real flow of immigration to the U.S. and what does it tell us?
Do Mexicans leaving the US http://t.co/aFx0op8x know something the Indians and Asians coming to the US don't? http://t.co/cKvXMMOe #FATCA
— U.S. Citizen Abroad (@USCitizenAbroad) June 20, 2012
“The freedom and democracy in this country are top of the world, no question about it.” – An Asian immigrant featured in this video Continue reading
Smoke ‘Em Out!
Smoke ’em out … whatever means necessary …
Recent Brock discussions of Form 8854, dates of cessation of US citizenship, and incoherence of the formal statements and instructions that emanate from both Department of State and Department of Treasury/IRS — all of these look like nasty aftermath to 9/11. A case can be made that over the past decade the United States has turned from hot pursuit of handy political “enemies” to cynical redefinition of its own extraterritorial persons as resources of interest who can help to foot the bill for the unspeakable financial costs of their extravaganza of idiot revenge. FATCA and passport revocation sure smell like smoke!
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Please read this post if your actual expatriation date is before 2004 (Updated)
UPDATE: Michael J. Miller made a further comment based on a conversation with an IRS employee knowledgeable about expatriation (emphasis mine):
As a follow-up to my prior posts, I spoke today with someone at the IRS who is knowledgeable in the “expatriation” area to discuss the issue of someone who renounced prior to enactment of the American Jobs Creation Act in 2004 but never obtained a CLN. While the advice I received was not a formal expression of the IRS’s position on this subject, both she and the colleague that she consulted were of the view that it would be crazy for the IRS to treat such an individual as subject to the expatriation rules. I hope that those of you for whom this is a huge issue will take some measure of comfort from this update.
Waking up Canadian – Are you lucky?
Came across this old article with a very funny video. Posting it just in case any of the particulars apply to anyone here who may be Canadian and not know it.
“The Canadian government doesn’t know the precise number or location of individuals affected by the legislation. But it believes most are U.S. citizens, a spokeswoman for Canada’s immigration office said. U.S. Department of Homeland Security records show 240,000 Canadians were naturalized in the U.S. from 1948 to 1977; the new law fixes problems that occurred during those years.”
The article states that eligible individuals are automatically Canadian but have to apply for it in order to obtain proof. Also described are several situations where people felt they were unfairly denied their Canadian citizenship. I have never come across anything suggesting that those with Canadian eligibility have had trouble getting their status established.
“Some such cases languished in litigation for years. Others surfaced in 2007, when new U.S. rules requiring passports for travel between Canada and the U.S. uncovered significant numbers of people who thought they were Canadian, but weren’t.”
Canada Issues a Wake-Up Call: You May Be a Citizen
Any chance this could be good news for anyone here?
A Swiss Brocker sneaks in to talk to Senator Guess Who: Introducing a new category (Reductio ad absurdum)
I introduce a new category of posts, reductio ad absurdum, with a video by a Isaac Brock reader, Wellington.