taxconnections.com
Accidentel Americans Reel But Vow To Fight On As France's Conseil d'Etat Rules In Support Of Current FATCA Regime | TaxConnections
So-called "Accidental Americans" in France and elsewhere in Europe expressed disappointment, and in some cases dismay, after France's top administrative court ruled that the current regime under which France provides information to the U.S. under its controversial Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act could stand, and didn't need changing or to be scrapped.In its decision, published yesterday, the Conseil d'Etat said it saw no legal basis to support claims by the Paris-based Accidental Americans Association that the way France currently implements FATCA violated the privacy of dual French/American citizens.It also rejected arguments that the reporting regime is one-sided – that is, that it doesn't oblige the U.S. to provide the same amount of information about French citizens living in the U.S., and thus the information flow is one-sided – according to French news reports."The [Conseil d'Etat] ruled that the claims by the accidental Americans, that the regulations under which FATCA is enforced in France, lack legal legitimacy, are unfounded," the French news agency, AFP reported.It added that the decision was in line with statements made at a hearing on the matter earlier this month by the public rapporteur that the problems having to do with FATCA at most had to do with "technical difficulties of implementation."