5 ms·

So you call it benefit - paying 30%+ of your income in taxes worldwide instead of paying 20$ for visa on arrival? That makes no sense.

tryingagainbro 9y ago
You will (probably) NOT get another visa to USA if you renounce for taxes.
- Symbiote 9y ago
  I would presume it's no problem if you actually paid any owed taxes.
  - tryingagainbro 9y ago
    If they determined you did for taxes, it's a no-no: Former U.S. citizens would be required to obtain a visa to travel to the United States or show that they are eligible for admission pursuant to the terms of the Visa Waiver Program. If unable to qualify for a visa, the person could be permanently barred from entering the United States. If the Department of Homeland Security determines that the renunciation is motivated by tax avoidance purposes, the individual will be found inadmissible to the United States under Section 212(a)(10)(E) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(10)(E)), as amended. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal-considerations/us-citizenship-laws-policies/renunciation-of-citizenship.html https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal-considerati...
- kogepathic 9y ago
  You cannot/shouldn't renounce your US citizenship for tax reasons. [0] Every piece of advice you read from anyone online will say the same thing: if you must give a reason for expatriation (and you don't have to), say anything but taxes. You don't officially have to give a reason to renounce, but consular officials might ask you verbally for your reasons. You are not required to give one though. You have the option to include a written statement, but I'm not sure why you'd ever want to take it (unless you really want to give them additional reasons to deny you entry). [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_Amendment_(immigration) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_Amendment_(immigration)
Symbiote 9y ago
You need to be earning over $100,000 a year, and live in a country where local tax is lower than in the USA. That's not especially common. Further details: https://www.americansabroad.org/us-taxes-abroad-for-dummies-update/ https://www.americansabroad.org/us-taxes-abroad-for-dummies-... (I'm not American, but none of several close friends in Europe with dual US/something-EU citizenship have given up their American citizenship.)
- nvarsj 9y ago
  It gets WAY more complex if you don't have a standard salary job. Even if you don't make over 100K a year. E.g. small business owner expat is in for a world of pain, stress, and audit.
cr1895 9y ago
>paying 30%+ of your income in taxes worldwide This is a big misunderstanding of US taxation. Every US citizen must file their taxes on income earned anywhere in the world, even if not earned in the US. However, for most people, it is very unlikely to actually pay any additional tax to the US government. https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/u-s-citizens-and-resident-aliens-abroad" https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/u-s-... "Your worldwide income is subject to U.S. income tax, regardless of where you reside." But there's the foreign earned income exclusion: https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/foreign-earned-income-exclusion https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/fore...
- seanmcdirmid 9y ago
  After you make $100k, there is also the foreign tax credit. In most countries, you don't need to bother with the foreign earned income exclusion unless you are not paying tax at all.
- beagle3 9y ago
  If you have any kind of saving or investment outside the us, say, a pension fund or a mutual fund, then you do owe quite a bit even if you live in the US (more if you don't). Almost all of these investments/funds are a PFIC by US rules, which means a world of pain - to the point that over 20 years you are likely to have to pay more in taxes than however much money you have there.
pc86 9y ago
I don't think you understand how taxes work. US tax rates are marginal, so for your effective tax rate to be 30% you'd probably be earning several million dollars in payroll. Very unlikely. Not to mention the fact that if you're an expat, income tax paid in your country of residence counts toward your US tax obligation. If you live somewhere with higher taxes, you owe the US nothing. If you live somewhere with lower taxes, you owe only the difference.

tryingagainbro 9y ago

You will (probably) NOT get another visa to USA if you renounce for taxes.

Symbiote 9y ago
I would presume it's no problem if you actually paid any owed taxes.
- tryingagainbro 9y ago
  If they determined you did for taxes, it's a no-no: Former U.S. citizens would be required to obtain a visa to travel to the United States or show that they are eligible for admission pursuant to the terms of the Visa Waiver Program. If unable to qualify for a visa, the person could be permanently barred from entering the United States. If the Department of Homeland Security determines that the renunciation is motivated by tax avoidance purposes, the individual will be found inadmissible to the United States under Section 212(a)(10)(E) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(10)(E)), as amended. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal-considerations/us-citizenship-laws-policies/renunciation-of-citizenship.html https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal-considerati...
kogepathic 9y ago
You cannot/shouldn't renounce your US citizenship for tax reasons. [0] Every piece of advice you read from anyone online will say the same thing: if you must give a reason for expatriation (and you don't have to), say anything but taxes. You don't officially have to give a reason to renounce, but consular officials might ask you verbally for your reasons. You are not required to give one though. You have the option to include a written statement, but I'm not sure why you'd ever want to take it (unless you really want to give them additional reasons to deny you entry). [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_Amendment_(immigration) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_Amendment_(immigration)

Symbiote 9y ago

You need to be earning over $100,000 a year, and live in a country where local tax is lower than in the USA. That's not especially common. Further details: https://www.americansabroad.org/us-taxes-abroad-for-dummies-update/ https://www.americansabroad.org/us-taxes-abroad-for-dummies-... (I'm not American, but none of several close friends in Europe with dual US/something-EU citizenship have given up their American citizenship.)

nvarsj 9y ago
It gets WAY more complex if you don't have a standard salary job. Even if you don't make over 100K a year. E.g. small business owner expat is in for a world of pain, stress, and audit.

cr1895 9y ago

>paying 30%+ of your income in taxes worldwide This is a big misunderstanding of US taxation. Every US citizen must file their taxes on income earned anywhere in the world, even if not earned in the US. However, for most people, it is very unlikely to actually pay any additional tax to the US government. https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/u-s-citizens-and-resident-aliens-abroad" https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/u-s-... "Your worldwide income is subject to U.S. income tax, regardless of where you reside." But there's the foreign earned income exclusion: https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/foreign-earned-income-exclusion https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/fore...

seanmcdirmid 9y ago
After you make $100k, there is also the foreign tax credit. In most countries, you don't need to bother with the foreign earned income exclusion unless you are not paying tax at all.
beagle3 9y ago
If you have any kind of saving or investment outside the us, say, a pension fund or a mutual fund, then you do owe quite a bit even if you live in the US (more if you don't). Almost all of these investments/funds are a PFIC by US rules, which means a world of pain - to the point that over 20 years you are likely to have to pay more in taxes than however much money you have there.

pc86 9y ago

I don't think you understand how taxes work. US tax rates are marginal, so for your effective tax rate to be 30% you'd probably be earning several million dollars in payroll. Very unlikely. Not to mention the fact that if you're an expat, income tax paid in your country of residence counts toward your US tax obligation. If you live somewhere with higher taxes, you owe the US nothing. If you live somewhere with lower taxes, you owe only the difference.