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A comment on U.S. Expats Balk at Tax Law: American Citizen Renunciations Are Soaring. Parent comment

Re:U.S. Expats Balk at Tax Law: American Citizen Renunciatio... by a035bb942 on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @03:55AM (#6204507)
> Over the threshold, you only pay taxes if you live in a country where taxes are less than the US, which is, to be honest, not that many countries.

It's (sort of) that simple for earned income. In another country you may throughout your life receive money from a wide range of sources (health benefits, health recovery, child benefits, pensions, scholarships, the list goes on...) - the US tax status on these is incredibly complex at best. The punishments for making a mistake can be severe.

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Re:U.S. Expats Balk at Tax Law: American Citizen Renunciatio... by seanmcdirmid on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @05:00AM (#6204693)
My income is earned and heavily taxed. I even have to pay taxes for my medical insurance, which are otherwise exempt in the states. Ya, it can be nightmare, and I have no idea what I would do if I ever got audited; its not like we get official documentation about pay since taxes in earning country are deducted automatically. At best, we have some pay stubs.
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