To some people it may come as a surprise to learn that each year many Americans renounce their United States citizenship, and for various reasons, decide to take up permanent residence in another country. So far this year the number of Americans completing this process is up to 1,577 people and last year nearly 3,000 former Americans decided to give up their citizenship. While the numbers may not seem significant, researches say that this trend is becoming increasingly popular. Even though many people cite these high numbers as a result of the Obama administration’s crackdown on taxing American citizens hiding their wealth overseas, because the government does not publish the reasons behind people’s renunciation, it is impossible to really know the cause behind the increasing amount of Americans who no longer want to be American.
In order to renounce U.S. citizenship, a person must go to an American embassy or consulate outside of the U.S. and must complete and sign several documents declaring that they would like to renounce their citizenship. People must also complete one or two interviews to confirm that they are giving up their citizenship voluntarily and understand what they are doing – in total; the process may take several months. To some people, the requirements listed so far in order to renounce U.S. citizenship seem simple and painless; however, as with most things controlled by the government, there is a monetary fee that cannot be ignored.
Prior to 2010 it was free to renounce U.S. citizenship, but in July of that year a $450 was established. As of this Friday, that fee will more than quadruple to a whopping $2,350 which officials say will “capture the real, unsubsidized cost of providing this service.” International attorney Andrew Mitchell says that this new increase may also “impress upon those individuals that there’s no going back,” by “making sure that you really, really want to renounce your citizenship.” Other researchers that noted that this new price tag is not likely to discourage wealthy Americans who are looking to leave behind their citizenship as a way to escape paying U.S. taxes.
While the U.S. government does not currently seem to be concerned with the rising number of ex-pats, it will be interesting to see if the fee continues to increase as the number of people seeking citizenship elsewhere remains on the rise.
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