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NZ Govt May Gut Privacy Laws For US Citizens and Ex-Pats
Master Moose writes with an excerpt from stuff.co.nz indicating that New Zealand's government "wants to override privacy laws to supply the U.S. Government with private details about Americans living in New Zealand. As part of a global tax-dodging crackdown, the U.S. is forcing banks and other financial institutions to hand over the private financial details of U.S. 'persons' and companies based overseas. From July this year, Kiwi banks and insurers will be required to provide U.S. tax authorities with American customers' contact details, bank account numbers and transaction history. The move comes amid continuing criticism of New Zealand's participation in Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement talks, aimed at securing a wider-reaching free trade deal with the U.S. and other countries. Critics say the secretive talks could restrict New Zealand's ability to make its own laws on everything from the environment to employment."
If you want to renounce the obligations of citizenship, you must also renounce the benefits of citizenship and officially naturalize as a citizen of another country. Seems fair to me.
Most countries distinguish clearly between being a citizen and a resident. And usually the only thing you can't do as a non-citizen resident is voting or standing in general elections, or sometimes things like joining the army or police force. Everything else, there should be little difference.
It seems that the USA has this weird interpretation that US citizens should have all the legal obligations that US residents should have, even if they are not US residents anymore, including obligations that US residents that are not citizens.
New Zealand is playing the role of US puppy, as proved the Kim Dotcom house raid, breaking their own laws in the process as anyway the priority was coming from outside.
You won't fix US attitude from outside, and if you really want to run, don't do it to one of its own colonies.
They do. That the US is spreading their net wider and wider is troubling. How much longer before the more middle of the road ex-pat countries get roped into this. Say Mexico, Belize or Costa Rica? Right now our retirees are welcomed down there, but I wonder if that will be the case if this happens.
Basically it's becoming more and more evident that US citizens are being viewed as property by the government. And they want a piece of everything that property makes, no matter where it is.