deVere launches Washington DC-based ‘Repeal FATCA’ campaign

Today is a momentous day for deVere. Today is the day that we’re officially launching our Washington DC-based campaign to have FATCA repealed.

I’ve been an outspoken critic of this fatally-flawed law, which turns American expats into financial pariahs, for several years.
Indeed, with a change of administration in the White House; the Republicans controlling the Senate and Congress; President Trump pledging to rescind a number of Obama’s ill-judged executive orders; and, of course, Trump’s highly anticipated 2017 tax reform package, now could well be the ideal – and only – time to repeal the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.

But we must act fast.

As such, we have put together a team of experienced Washington DC professionals, including former U.S. diplomat and long-time Senate leadership staffer Jim Jatras, plus several influential Congressmen and Senators, to push the repeal effort into the stratosphere.

Rolled out in 2014, FATCA is virtually unknown to the majority of Americans, but has been causing mayhem with the global financial system outside the U.S.

Hyped as a way of catching serial fat cat tax evaders ‘stashing’ funds offshore, FATCA requires all non-U.S. financial institutions in every country across the globe, (including banks, credit unions, insurance companies, investment and pension funds, etc.)  to report data on U.S. accounts to the IRS.

Should any nation refuse to comply with FATCA’s regulations, their financial sector will be slapped with hefty penalties that could be catastrophic to the economy.

In essence, FATCA is an extraterritorial diktat that infringes on countries’ sovereignty rights; burdens other countries’ financial institutions; and is highly detrimental to consumers and taxpayers.

Moreover, the law is irrevocably damaging to the eight million Americans residing overseas, which, in turn has led to record numbers of expats renouncing their U.S. citizenship.

Significantly, the 2016 Republican Platform call for FATCA’s repeal, because of its “warrantless seizure of personal financial information without reasonable suspicion or probable cause” and its threat to the “ability of overseas Americans to lead normal lives.”

Indeed, abolishing FATCA whilst Obama was still President was almost impossible, despite repeal bills set up by Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC).

However, with Donald Trump now in the White House, and his tax reform package being introduced this year, the position has changed.

I am delighted that Jim Jatras, who edits repealFATCA.com, is joining me in this campaign, along with a team of experienced professionals. Jim sums it up perfectly when he says: “Billions of dollars have been wasted worldwide complying with FATCA, billions of words have been written complaining about it. Now it’s time for action. When that tax bill gets to President Trump’s desk, we want FATCA repeal in it.”

These are certainly exciting times ahead, with an extremely positive chance that we can banish this toxic law to the history books, where it belongs.

Click here for my LinkedIn profile and Twitter account.

Your comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Financial Health Quiz

Discover your financial well-being with the Financial Health Quiz.

In just 2 minutes, assess your finances, get personalized results, and actionable steps – all for free.

Take the quiz

Get the latest from Nigel Green