Renunciation and Relinquishment of United States Citizenship: Discussion thread (Ask your questions) Part Two
Ask your questions about Renunciation and Relinquishment of United States Citizenship and Certificates of Loss of Nationality.
Participants will need to provide their e-mail address (real or fake) and an alias. The only written rule is that participants must use a same alias each time they post (and not “anonymous” or derivatives thereof).
Bear in mind that any responses that you get from participants is peer-to-peer help, and it is not intended as a replacement for professional advice. Also, the Isaac Brock Society provides this disclaimer: neither the Society nor any of its members are professionals. We offer our advice here only in friendship and we recommend that our readers seek professional advice if they need it.
If you wish to receive an e-mail notification of comments, check the box to that effect when making your first comment.
NB: This discussion is a continuation of an older discussion that became too large for our software to handle well. See Renunciation and Relinquishment of United States Citizenship: Discussion thread (Ask your questions) Part One
@AD203, Congratulations!
Congratulations!
AD203,
You’ll be fine now. Get your vitamins & extras, as you’re lacking. Intake probiotics,
Then, breathe, & go back to school.
You’re done.
🙂
@AD203
What a great success story, and you owe it all to yourself! A big Congratulations and the very best to you in your future endeavours.
Big congratulations, AD203. Wow, you can now get back to your studies and on with your life, free of the US and its CBT. Thanks for giving us an update. Hope you will keep in touch. Know that your story here will help someone else along their way.
@ AD203
Wunderschön! Wunderbar! Wundervoll! I don’t know which is the right choice in German to say this is wonderful news. I hope you don’t mind me linking back to your original post so others can appreciate the barrier laden road you followed to your present state of relief and freedom. (Sounds like you got there faster than anticipated.) I loved your greeting to us in that post: “Hello, freedom-fighters.” My best wishes to you in your future career as a German physicist.
https://isaacbrocksociety.ca/renunciation/comment-page-237/#comment-7275859
@AD203
Congratulations, that’s wonderful news!!!!!
you became German … but how did you get rid of the US one ? or did you renounce sorry confused
@Bruno
ditto
@Bruno, Polly
Read the link EmBee posted, just above yours.
His German citizenship chance hinged on him NOT being a US citizen. Yes, he renounced. So, for a short time, he was stateless. A very harrowing experience!
@Jane
Strange indeed. Never heard of that before.
@Jane, @Polly
Yep, I was stateless (de facto; no passport, but also no CLN yet) for about 2 months in 2012 after renouncing US citizenship and before receiving German citizenship. Not a very pleasant state of affairs.
Please pardon my ignorance, but why is being stateless such a bad thing? The nations to which belong will not protect us, so it seems to be that the only purpose of citisenship in the modern world is to establish the order in which the nations of the workd gets to kick us around.
@Japan T, mostly for travel purposes these days. But here’s Wiki on the subject.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statelessness
@Polly, Germany will not allow dual citizenship unless you’re an EU/Swiss national so you have to give up your other citizenship before you can finally complete your German citizenship process. You can go so far in the German process, but you reach a point where you have to produce your CLN before they’ll go through the final stage and grant you German citizenship. There are other exceptions.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_nationality_law#Dual_citizenship
Hello Brockers!
It has been some time since I last posted… but I am still paying attention to everything. I am not sure if this is the right thread to post this.
Thought: I was reading through this thread and back in May (not sure) someone posted about how the ESTA has changed. I went on the website and looked. You not do have to put in past nationalities. Which would mean, anyone who has renounced, b has to put that in to travel back to the USA.
After MULTIPLE conversations with hubby and reading all these threads… hubby has decided that renouncing is the right thing for our future. HOWEVER, it has always been ok that he can just travel back to the USA using ESTA and visa-waiver program with Australia. Now that this new option has been added to the form, do you think there could be a chance his application would not be approved? Travelling to the USA will always have to be an option for him to visit family. You can’t give that up. Has anyone had an experience of travelling to the USA once renouncing under this new form? Does anyone think this could be a reason NOT to renounce and just keep lodging US taxes?
Thank you so much!
@Karen, would love your view on this seeing as though you just did it in Sydney. Will you be travelling back to the USA?
@StressedInAus, I recently applied for a ESTA (17th May) and had no problem getting approval. I did wonder if the US would throw a wobbly given I renounced back in 2013, but no I had approval within 24 hours of my application. I can’t remember if it asked me for previous nationalities though. Trip is in September so we’ll see how it goes then.
@Medea – Thank you for that! What is your country of citizenship now? Sorry if you have put this in another thread already.
He was not worried about travelling back to the USA based on other experiences that we have read on here once renouncing. But now, with the change to the form, it seems different. Anyway… all the best with your trip in September :).
@StressedInAus, I’m British. I was born dual so had British citizenship via my parents.
@StressedInAus – I’ll wait until I receive my CLN before attempting the ESTA, but I have promised my mother a visit by the end of the year. I asked a similar question on another thread and got an answer from Verity https://isaacbrocksociety.ca/2013/09/19/question/comment-page-15/#comment-7614697
I suppose there’s always a chance they will change the rules and make it difficult for renunciants to visit the US, but I would think they would find our tourist dollars just as attractive as any other Australian’s (or other nationality).
@Medea – glad to hear that your ESTA was approved quickly. Hope your trip goes smoothly.
@Karen – Thanks :).
I had a feeling that this might have been brought up somewhere else on another thread. Thank you so much. I went and had a read.
Yes, there is always the chance that they could change the rules and this is stressful, but I agree… surely, at the end of the day, they want our tourist dollars! I don’t necessarily mind difficult (well, as long as it is not horrendous), just not impossible.
By the way, BIG congrats on getting your renunciation done :)!!!! I might email you in the future if that is ok? I still have your email. Thanks again for the info. I can at least sleep easier tonight.
@StressedInAus – Thanks. Having renounced is a weight off my shoulders. Will feel even better when I have a CLN in hand and have completed the final tax filings.
As for what they might do in the future – don’t forget that our relatives back in the US are still citizens and constituents – they can complain to their elected representatives if it becomes impossible for us to visit.
And – no problem if you want to email me again.
@Karen, thanks. Hope so too. I’ll be taking a copy of my CLN and my cancelled US passport just in case.
Well not sure which discussion area to place this one in.
I renounced in 2015 and have filed taxes etc for all years up to and including 2015. I had thought i was done with all this.
Today i receive a letter from CIBC indicating they have without any warning put restrictions on my investments until i complete a W-9 form. The letter is a bit complex to fully understand but it sounds like in addition they will be applying the: maximum back-up withholding tax on dividends, interest and from US, but moreover gross proceeds of all sales.
My account does not have and never has had an US indicia so had not expected to get any sort of FATCA letter.
The only clue they would have is i did request PFIC annual income statements for some mutual funds.
My guess is that this form is not applicable to me now and i will call the bank to ask more, but i thought there might be some helpful ideas here. I did a search of the site for w-9 but have not found much that clarifies this.
sorry should have mentioned i have my CLN also.
@JustGetItDone
W9 is for US citizens/taxpayers. You should ask for W8-BEN or equivalent and offer to provide a copy of your CLN.