• Trainguyrom@reddthat.com
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      10 months ago

      Yup, its an old Civil War era law for folks who tried to avoid dying in the Civil War by moving to Canada. Reasoning was, if you wanted to draft dodge you could support the war financially instead. Then during the early 2000s as folks who graduated college at the wrong time and ended up more college debt than they can ever pay off started moving abroad to escape it, they increased the fee and took other steps to make renouncing more difficult since expats were renouncing their citizenship to stop owing taxes in the US

      • uis@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        ended up more college debt than they can ever pay off started moving abroad to escape it, they increased the fee

        Short version: USA wanted slaves

        to stop owing taxes in the US

        I’m not a lawyer and I’m not from US, but I’m pretty sure this is not how it works.

        • qwrty@lemmy.world
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          10 months ago

          I’m not a lawyer and I’m not from US, but I’m pretty sure this is not how it works.

          Ah but it is. The US is, as far as I know, the only country who taxes its citizens who are living abroad. And yes, it is as stupid and shitty as it sounds.

          • uis@lemmy.world
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            10 months ago

            No, I mean stopping owing part. If you did not pay taxes but should have while you were citizen, you are still owe taxes.

            It seems US is most backwards country. Well, it could be most upside-down country, but this title is already claimed by Australia.

            • Trainguyrom@reddthat.com
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              9 months ago

              Perhaps I could have worded it better. I meant not accruing additional taxes to pay. But if you’re already debt dodging by changing countries, realistically what is the federal government gonna do?