That’s money you quickly recoup by not paying any US taxes.
You’ve said that twice now. I was under the impression that if your US tax liability is $X but you already paid >$X in foreign taxes, you file a form saying so and your US tax liability drops to $0. Is my understanding incorrect?
And as of Apr 14, 2025, the safety of not living in a dictatorship where the rule of law doesn’t apply anymore is also a big plus.
That’s an excellent argument for not living within US jurisdiction, but how is it an argument for not keeping US citizenship as an ex-pat? Are first-world countries like the ones you mentioned likely to force you to return to US jurisdiction even with you being a citizen of the other country?
[Listing of various qualitative benefits, concluding with…] Not being American is mostly a matter of refusing to be associated with - and finance - an amoral society.
No argument from me on any of that! (In particular, as a Not Just Bikes fan, I’m well aware and extremely envious of superior European quality of life.)
Are there any other concrete reasons why having secondary US citizenship would be a liability, though? For example, does it cause problems crossing borders even if you’re traveling on the other country’s passport, or some other practical issue like that? Or maybe I vaguely remember reading something once about it being problematic to open foreign bank accounts as a US citizen…? Those are the kinds of things I’m hoping you could expand upon.
You’ve said that twice now. I was under the impression that if your US tax liability is $X but you already paid >$X in foreign taxes, you file a form saying so and your US tax liability drops to $0. Is my understanding incorrect?
That may be the case today. But when I left a quarter century ago, it wasn’t like that. I don’t remember the specifics, but I would have ended up paying some thousands of dollars every year.
That’s an excellent argument for not living within US jurisdiction, but how is it an argument for not keeping US citizenship as an ex-pat?
A country that’s gone rogue can’t strongarm another to deport their enemy citizens living there back home if they’re not citizens no more.
I fully expect the Trump regime - or whichever new Trumpesque dictator replaces the orange buffoon when he kicks the bucket - to come after expats it deems treacherous or enemies of the state or something. I’d rather the US can’t legally demand my repatriation.
The fewer ties you have to the US, the better. It was true before, and it’s especially true now.
The other reason is, a lot of foreigners - like, a LOT - don’t particularly like Americans, even the friendliest ones. It’s easier not to be an American than having to prove you’re one of the nice ones all the time.
problematic to open foreign bank accounts as a US citizen…?
I never had any problem. But remember, it was a long time ago. Things were still pretty chill in the early 2000’s. You could literally walk into a bank and open an account in 10 minutes with any ID that looked legit 🙂 There was no KYC or anything like that, and banks mostly cared about whether you had money to deposit. I mean not quite 80’s like, but nothing like the stringent dystopia of today.
Also, I had citizenship from a EU country, so that helped.
You’ve said that twice now. I was under the impression that if your US tax liability is $X but you already paid >$X in foreign taxes, you file a form saying so and your US tax liability drops to $0. Is my understanding incorrect?
That’s an excellent argument for not living within US jurisdiction, but how is it an argument for not keeping US citizenship as an ex-pat? Are first-world countries like the ones you mentioned likely to force you to return to US jurisdiction even with you being a citizen of the other country?
No argument from me on any of that! (In particular, as a Not Just Bikes fan, I’m well aware and extremely envious of superior European quality of life.)
Are there any other concrete reasons why having secondary US citizenship would be a liability, though? For example, does it cause problems crossing borders even if you’re traveling on the other country’s passport, or some other practical issue like that? Or maybe I vaguely remember reading something once about it being problematic to open foreign bank accounts as a US citizen…? Those are the kinds of things I’m hoping you could expand upon.
The US doesn’t give a shit how much you pay in foreign taxes. Its irrelevant to the IRS.
The foreign income tax exemption varies based on marital status, but generally you dont pay US taxes if you earned less than $100,000 per year.
Except for capital gains. There’s no foreign income exemption for that.
That may be the case today. But when I left a quarter century ago, it wasn’t like that. I don’t remember the specifics, but I would have ended up paying some thousands of dollars every year.
A country that’s gone rogue can’t strongarm another to deport their enemy citizens living there back home if they’re not citizens no more.
I fully expect the Trump regime - or whichever new Trumpesque dictator replaces the orange buffoon when he kicks the bucket - to come after expats it deems treacherous or enemies of the state or something. I’d rather the US can’t legally demand my repatriation.
The fewer ties you have to the US, the better. It was true before, and it’s especially true now.
The other reason is, a lot of foreigners - like, a LOT - don’t particularly like Americans, even the friendliest ones. It’s easier not to be an American than having to prove you’re one of the nice ones all the time.
I never had any problem. But remember, it was a long time ago. Things were still pretty chill in the early 2000’s. You could literally walk into a bank and open an account in 10 minutes with any ID that looked legit 🙂 There was no KYC or anything like that, and banks mostly cared about whether you had money to deposit. I mean not quite 80’s like, but nothing like the stringent dystopia of today.
Also, I had citizenship from a EU country, so that helped.
It was like that a quarter century ago.