Introduction and purpose …

Entitlement to U.S. Social Security (including spousal and survivor benefits) after expatriation has always been a difficult. During the months of January and February 2026 U.S. tax lawyer Virginia La Torre Jeker did a “deep dive” into how expatriation impacts entitlement to Social Security benefits and the way they are taxed. Expatriation (renouncing U.S. citizenship or Green Card abandonment), affects U.S. Social Security in at least two distinct ways:

– the transition from “U.S. Person” to a nonresident alien means that (from a purely U.S. perspective) will be Social Security will be taxed differently. The difference from the U.S. perspective may be modified by tax treaties

– your citizenship after expatriation matters. Citizens of some countries may be required to return to the United States every six months to continue to receive their benefits.

Therefore, the impact of expatriation on the taxation and access to U.S. Social Security must be understood prior to expatriation.

Spoiler alert: Expatriation will NOT impact the capacity to receive Social Security benefits for citizens found on “List 1” (discussed below). This includes citizens of Canada, the U.K., etc. …
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