Trump must “show some backbone” and repeal Obama’s highly controversial global tax law that negatively impacts foreign financial institutions (FFIs)and Americans living abroad, says boss of deVere Group.
Nigel Green has asked the President Elect to address the problems brought on by the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which has adversely affected FFIs and millions of Americans around the world.
Green said: “Donald Trump has publicly stated that he will revoke some of Obama’s executive orders. I would urge him to make repealing FATCA one of those he revokes.
“This must be a major priority as FATCA negatively impacts millions of U.S. citizens. It has been responsible for the record number of Americans, most of whom are proud patriots, feeling that there is no other option than to relinquish their U.S. citizenship.
“Since FATCA was introduced, official figures show that more and more Americans give up their U.S. passports every year. This correlates with a deVere Group survey carried out last year that reveals 73 percent of Americans living overseas are tempted to give up their U.S. passports.”
He continues: “This toxic legislation turns law-abiding Americans living overseas, of whom there are approximately eight million, into financial pariahs.
“For instance, many U.S. citizens cannot even now hold a bank account in their country of residence as foreign banks routinely feel Americans are too much trouble thanks to FATCA’s onerous and costly rules by which they would need to abide to take them on as clients. This makes normal life extremely challenging, to say the least.
“By using its super power status, the U.S. has over the last few years been coercing foreign financial institutions around the world into accepting FATCA, or facing stiff financial penalties and extraterritorial sanctions. These FFIs are now working as de facto agents of America’s tax authority.”
Green concluded that this issue is a “golden opportunity for Trump to show his mettle and reverse a fatally flawed, misguided, imperialistic law”.
The FATCA came into effect in July 2014 and requires all non-U.S. financial institutions (including banks, insurance companies, investment funds and pension funds) to report the financial information of American clients who have accounts holding more than $50,000 directly to the IRS.
The official aim of the legislation is to try and combat tax evasion. However, its opponents, including Nigel Green, a long-term vocal critic of the legislation, says:
“Tackling tax evasion is a noble and worthwhile objective, yet FATCA’s dragnet approach will be highly ineffective at achieving this as well as being prohibitively costly.”
22/11/2016
