Like many, I was saddened to learn of the death of Muhammad Ali. Most of the media discussion of Ali’s death focused on his boxing career; there was far less attention paid to Ali’s refusal to accept induction into the United States military. This refusal led to his being stripped of his boxing license (why anyone would need a license to box is beyond me) and interestingly, the revocation of his passport (if you can’t box in America, we will prevent you from boxing outside America). Hmmm. Does Ali’s passport revocation remind you of any recent or past events?

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I was recently interviewed by Newsweek for a story covering FATCA and its effects on US citizens abroad, as well as the perceived impact it has had in causing many individuals to give up their US citizenship. The questions asked by the reporter, Barbara Stcherbatcheff, were quite illuminating; my responses even more so. Many of my statements did not make it into the ultimate Newsweek article, but I believe readers will find the entire interview most revealing. Read on, and learn the true FACTS behind FATCA.

1. NEWSWEEK: The compliance cost of FATCA to financial institutions alone has been roughly estimated at US$8 billion a year, approximately ten times the amount of estimated US tax revenue estimated to be raised ($792 million.) Unusually, FATCA was not subject to a cost/benefit analysis by the Committee on Ways and Means. So why do you believe that Read More