Thursday, November 28, 2013

U.S. tax law driving expatriates to renounce citizenship

Rand Paul Goes After Tax Law Aimed at Expatriates - Drew Mackenzie, Newsmax:

November 27, 2013 - "A controversial new tax law that Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul is attempting to repeal is driving hundreds of well-heeled Americans living abroad to renounce their U.S. citizenship.

"The Foreign Account Tax Compliant Act, passed in 2010, requires financial institutions overseas to provide the Internal Revenue Service with annual reports on their U.S. account holders.

"The law, which is aimed at expatriates holding $50,000 or more in their banks, was enacted to prevent Americans from evading taxes. But Americans with dual citizenship are up in arms, and are dumping their U.S. passports at a record rate, McClatchy Newspapers reports. Singer Tina Turner, Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, and Democratic fundraiser Denise Rich all have renounced their citizenship in the past two years.

"The number of people who have relinquished their citizenship has soared from 742 in 2009 to more than 1,854 this year, according to the State Department.

"'[The law] is a textbook example of a bad law that doesn’t achieve its stated purpose but does manage to unleash a host of unanticipated, destructive consequences,' said Paul as he introduced a bill this year to repeal it. 'Tax evasion is a problem that should be addressed, but not in an egregious way.'"

Read more: http://www.newsmax.com/US/expatriates-tax-paul-turner/2013/11/27/id/538992

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