Cross posted from RenouceUScitizenship
https://twitter.com/#!/renounceus/status/200946182908948480
The OVDI Winners and Losers
The Winners: OVDI and OVDP have been fantastic deals for: big time tax cheats resident in the United States and the “cross border professionals” who have will continue to profit from them for years to come. The big time tax cheats have settled with the IRS for pennies on the dollar. They will retain enough of their wealth to live happily for the rest of their lives. The “cross border professionals” (if they really are “professionals”) have generated enough business to fund their retirements.
The Losers: OVDI and OVDP have been vicious assaults on: Immigrants to the U.S., Green Card Holders and U.S. citizens living outside the United States. For them OVDI is a guarantee that their years of saving, investing, hard work, financial responsibility and attempts to comply with the law as they understood will lead to their financial ruin. Why did they enter OVDI? Why would they enter OVDI? More on that in a moment.
The Biggest Loser: Surprise! It’s the IRS and the U.S. government. By allowing U.S. citizens abroad, immigrants and green card holders to be part of the OVDI shakedown, and changing the rules of OVDP mid-stream, they have so eroded their credibility, that honest people are afraid to comply with laws that they are just learning about. It’s in the long term interest of the U.S. government to encourage tax compliance. Instead, citizens are renouncing, immigrants are leaving, and Green Card holders are turning in those cards. The word is out. People who would have immigrated to the U.S. will now go elsewhere. The United States of America has depreciated its most valuable assets – “credibility” and “moral capital”. Both educated people and real estate investors (and others) may be reluctant to immigrate to the U.S. But, this is a subject for a separate post.
This post is for immigrants – Those who currently reside in “Form Nation“ Continue reading