U.S. Hikes Fee To Renounce Citizenship By 422%

[Sinister Intents]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2014/08/28/u-s-hikes-fee-to-renounce-citizenship-by-422/

What are people's thoughts on this?

I think it's a disturbing way of making sure people can't leave this terrible place.

[Wonton Carter]

"why can't you just accept our freedom?!"

[Rafiq]

The fee is for those leaving for tax-related purposes, perhaps to prevent a minor capital flight.

[The Intransigent Faction]

The fee is for those leaving for tax-related purposes, perhaps to prevent a minor capital flight.

So this was a protectionist sort of response to tax inversion (i.e. the Burger King incident that Obama called "unpatriotic")? I can't wait for Fox to start foaming at the mouth about how corporations are being held hostage to high taxes, or something.

[Creative Destruction]

i can see the extra work needed to be done for this reason:


Apparently, dual citizens in Canada trying to shed their U.S. citizenship have created a backlog at the U.S. consulate in Toronto that stretches into the third week of January 2015. A decision to expatriate should never be taken lightly. Taxes or not, it can be a big step. And around the world, more people are talking about taking it.

but it shouldn't have been that much more. this is fucking insane. it's fucking insane that there is a strenuous process about this to begin with.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

The fee is for those leaving for tax-related purposes, perhaps to prevent a minor capital flight.

it's been raised from $450 to $2,350 though, so it's clearly not targeted at big business or corporate types.

Seems just to target the upper layers of the middle class as a way of raising more government money, essentially. Not really a big deal, just governments getting away with what they can.

[Hagalaz]

Interesting that you have to ask permission to renounce citizenship.

[bricolage]

Interesting that you have to ask permission to renounce citizenship.
Yeah, kind of funny in terms of the 'if you hate <insert country> so much why don't you just leave?' argument. Answer: 'ummm, <insert country> won't let me'.

[Trap Queen Voxxy]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2014/08/28/u-s-hikes-fee-to-renounce-citizenship-by-422/

What are people's thoughts on this?

I think it's a disturbing way of making sure people can't leave this terrible place.

You can move any where and get citizenship anywhere for free. You just have to marry someone in that country.

[John Nada]

You can move any where and get citizenship anywhere for free. You just have to marry someone in that country.

What about Best Korea? That one US solder who defected made it look so interesting. I hear the beer is good and the other things;) are FIRE.

[The Intransigent Faction]

You can move any where and get citizenship anywhere for free. You just have to marry someone in that country.

I love how simple you make that sound. :lol:

This also makes me wonder about the process for conscientious objectors, though. I doubt they'd be mailing a cheque to the state they escaped from their new home...

[Hrafn]

What about Best Korea? That one US solder who defected made it look so interesting. I hear the beer is good and the other things;) are FIRE.

The beer was okay.

[Trap Queen Voxxy]

I love how simple you make that sound. :lol:

This also makes me wonder about the process for conscientious objectors, though. I doubt they'd be mailing a cheque to the state they escaped from their new home...

Cuz it is that simple yo. Where is it not?

[bricolage]

Cuz it is that simple yo. Where is it not?
Well you do have to prove the marriage. US or UK will ask for skype logs, facebook messages, photographs etc. It's a lot harder to do sham marriages now than it used to be.

[The Intransigent Faction]

Well you do have to prove the marriage. US or UK will ask for skype logs, facebook messages, photographs etc. It's a lot harder to do sham marriages now than it used to be.

:blink:

That's...thorough? I mean, ignoring for the moment that they could access those things without asking you. That, and surely there's more 'official' proof than Facebook messages that would suffice without them. What are they gonna do? "Oh, their relationship statuses say 'Married'. Go on in!"

[bricolage]

:blink:

That's...thorough? I mean, ignoring for the moment that they could access those things without asking you. That, and surely there's more 'official' proof than Facebook messages that would suffice without them. What are they gonna do? "Oh, their relationship statuses say 'Married'. Go on in!"
Yeah it is weird. I think it's because often if you're marrying someone from another country you will have spent amounts of time in different countries so you have to show you were in contact or whatever, and people tend not to send letters anymore. Then you have to do interviews about where you met, what's his/her favourite film etc.

[Trap Queen Voxxy]

Well you do have to prove the marriage. US or UK will ask for skype logs, facebook messages, photographs etc. It's a lot harder to do sham marriages now than it used to be.

Cuz that's so hard for an experienced con, lol, even assuming it's not fake, it seems even easier.

[bricolage]

Cuz that's so hard for an experienced con, lol, even assuming it's not fake, it seems even easier.
But how many of us are experienced cons?
I'm sure you could get it if you really wanted but it's not as easy as marriage, bam, citizenship.

[Bala Perdida]

But how many of us are experienced cons?
I'm sure you could get it if you really wanted but it's not as easy as marriage, bam, citizenship.

Other than that, I've heard of so many cases where a couple marries and then the non-citizen has to go back to their birth country and go to a consulate. At that point, some weird bureacratic shit happens and the other person is trapped in their birth country for years with their case pending.

[John Nada]

The beer was okay.

Figured. The other things are probably just US propaganda, and the weed looks like schwag anyway http://www.thebohemianblog.com/2013/09/on-smoking-weed-in-north-korea.html :(

On the marriage thing. It must be hard/impossible for LGTBQ couples to get citizenship by marriage in many(most) countries.

For being trapped in an open air prison, is there anywhere in the world for a would-be revolutionary/criminal to go? Or does imperialism mean nowhere is safe? I guess you can't just go across the border in the US and renounce you citizenship like you use to.:(