REALLY?? Yes, really #YouCantMakeThisUp! Married Americans abroad are more likely to meet requirements to file US tax returns than are singles – But, then again marriage to a nonresident alien is considered to be a form of tax evasion https://t.co/UmSHPKb3cU via @ExpatriationLaw
— V. La Torre Jeker JD (@VLJeker) April 18, 2019
This post is a continuation of my post (referenced in the above tweet) which describes the reduction of the threshold for Married Filing Separately from $4050 to $5. In this post I describe why I believe that this change will result in further renunciations of U.S. citizenship. The primary incentive to renouncing citizenship is that: by requiring married low income Americans abroad to file U.S. tax returns, more financial information about their nonresident alien spouses will be reported to the IRS. On the most basic level, a Form 8938 is required only if a U.S. tax return is also required. The requirement to file a tax return increases the chances of a requirement to file Form 8938 (and others). Form 8938 does require the disclosure of some jointly owned assets. If you were a nonresident alien, would you want your financial information to be transferred to the IRS?
On December 19, 2018 Dr. Karen Alpert commenting on changes to the 2017 TCJA that would affect Americans abroad noted that:
Continue reading
