4/10/2010

More Americans giving up citizenship to escape taxes and regulations

From the Dow Jones Newswire:

The number of American citizens and green-card holders severing their ties with the U.S. soared in the latter part of 2009, amid looming U.S. tax increases and a more aggressive posture by the Internal Revenue Service towards Americans living overseas.

According to public records, just over 500 people worldwide renounced U.S. citizenship or permanent residency in the fourth quarter of 2009, the most recent period for which data are available. That is more people than have cut ties with the U.S. during all of 2007, and more than double the total expatriations in 2008.

An Ohio-born entrepreneur, now based in Switzerland, told Dow Jones he is considering turning in his U.S. passport. Mounting U.S. tax and reporting requirements are making potential business partners hesitate to do business with him, he said.

"I still do dearly love the U.S., and renouncing my citizenship is not something I take lightly. But more and more it is seeming like being part of a dysfunctional family," said the businessman, who asked that his name not be used for fear of retribution.

"The tax itself is only a small part of the issue," the Swiss-based entrepreneur said. "It's the overall regulatory environment." . . .

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1 Comments:

Blogger The Right Guy said...

I would think that you'd have to be rich to renounce your US citizenship as you have to have a certain financial standing in countries worth living in to get residency. Also, if I am correct, I don't think the US will allow you to renounce if you don't first have someplace to go, IE residency in another country.

The only country I could have a shot at is Italy, but I'd have to find my grandfather's birth certificate and he was born in 1887. I also would have to have a bunch of stuff translated and all for living in a country crazier than ours.

While there are countries that rate better than the US in terms of economic freedoms as researched by the heritage foundation, none have the gun rights we do here. May be John can shed some light on what other countries, if any, equal or exceed our own in terms of the right to keep and bear arms.

4/10/2010 7:50 PM  

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