For anyone wanting to know more about FATCA and how it may affect them, there's an information meeting in Zurich on the 6th April at the AWCZ Clubhouse SC. Here's the Commercial Events thread with details:

FATCA Problem solving info session

More info on the increasing chaos of FATCA at the RepealFATCA.com website:

http://repealfatca.com/index.asp?idm...ca-train-wreck

An AP article on ordinary Americans abroad renouncing their US citizenship to survive. One person interviewed is in Switzerland:

http://siouxcityjournal.com/ap/natio...6ef94fd71.html

Dead link I'm afraid

Strange! It worked for me a few minutes ago when it was first posted, but now I get the same error you do. Maybe they got too many click-throughs from Switzerland and freaked out.

Try this.

It looks like the story is now slated to appear Sunday, but in the search results (link provided above) are teaser images with captions describing some of the subjects of the story.

A group called Republicans Overseas and attorney Jim Bopp are preparing a lawsuit against the US government to have FATCA declared illegal and unconstitutional. "Mr Bopp told The Times that he plans to attack the act on three legal grounds: that it violates the Senate's sole possession of foreign treaty power, the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel or unusual punishment and the 14th Amendment’s personal privacy guarantee."

http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/20...tax-ac/?page=1

There's also a video interview with the journalist who wrote the article to the right of the article that gives background information.

Well the 8854 form has gone off in the registered post this morning so I’m done, finished, finito. My tax preparer is filing my final FBAR so that’s it. Totally free of the US. I can finally put all the paperwork away and get on with other, more important things in my life.

Congrats! It's definitely a stress-reducing transition, isn't it?

Yes, that's one worry off my mind Texaner. Now, if I could just find solutions for the other ones ...

I dutifully pay my taxes every year (Swiss and US) but I also find it frustrating that the US policies make my life so much more difficult. I understand wanting to track those who want to cheat the system, but for long term expats, especially those that want to settle permanently outside the country, the never-ending filing requirements are ridiculous. I will probably return at some point and am not considering renouncing my blue passport, but I find the insinuation that someone who does didn't deserve it to be terribly judgmental.

It wasn't the hassle of doing the paperwork, though that's bad enough. It was the US thinking they still had the right to expect me to pay tax even though I haven't lived in the country for over 40 years.

Citizen based taxation is wrong and it's time the US realised that.

By the way a new/more prominent section in the passport application form:

ACTS OR CONDITIONS

If any of the below-mentioned acts or conditions have been performed by or apply to the applicant, the portion which applies should be lined out, and a supplementary explanatory statement under oath (or affirmation) by the applicant should be attached and made a part of this application.

I have not, since acquiring United States citizenship/nationality, been naturalized as a citizen of a foreign state; taken an oath or made an affirmation or other formal declaration of allegiance to a foreign state; entered or served in the armed forces of a foreign state; accepted or performed the duties of any office, post, or employment under the government of a foreign state or political subdivision thereof; made a formal renunciation of nationality either in the United States, or before a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States in a foreign state; or been convicted by a court or court martial of competent jurisdiction of committing any act of treason against, or attempting by force to overthrow, or bearing arms against, the United States, or conspiring to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force, the government of the United States.

Furthermore, I have not been convicted of a federal or state drug offense or convicted of a"sex tourism" crimes statute, and I am not the subject of an outstanding federal, state, or local warrant of arrest for a felony; a criminal court order forbidding my departure from the United States; a subpoena received from the United States in a matter involving federal prosecution for, or grand jury investigation of, a felony.

So this has been added to new passports? Great.

Sincere congratulations on your newly won freedom from this and other forms of overweening government practiced by the US.

I understand the first part re. expatriating acts, but do not really understand this last bit. Does this mean that if I do sex tourism I can lose US citizenship? At times I've tried to find an easy way out this may be it.

Unfortunately, all it means (I suspect) is that you wouldn't get a passport, forcing you to limit your sex tourism to within the US.

You're probably right Texaner. That would be way too easy for getting rid of your citizenship.

Thanks Queen of Cups. It does feel good.

An idea floated on the IBS website the other day was to declare June 15th "International CLN Day" for all those people who'd received their CLN's and filed their 8854 forms. For those who don't know the 8854 form wraps up your US tax filing commitments and has to be filed no later than June 15th of the year following your renunciation/relinquishment, i.e. I renounced in March 2013 so my 8854 has to be filed by June 15th 2014. I think it's a great idea, but my suggestion was to call it "Dumped IRS Today" Day.

Dang! thought I had the easist escape plan in the making.

And as for sex, minus the tourism, in the good ole bible belt, pass.

The Franco-American Flophouse blog said this in a recent post about US citizenship renunciations:

"For years US citizenship had an almost mystical quality. It was the citizenship that "no one ever gives up." Americans abroad cared so much about that citizenship that they fought long and hard to be able to pass it along to their children born abroad. Now it has been right-sized with a vengeance and that devaluation effects ALL Americans wherever they live.

As for Americans abroad we have a fair number of casualties on our side, too. We are seeing our ranks diminishing as we get a phone call here and an email there saying that so and so has given up and made that trip to the US consulate. Even our compatriots who said in the past, "I will never EVER give up my US citizenship." But when you listen to their stories, you reluctantly agree that, yes, they really didn't have much of a choice. Good people. Loyal Americans with strong emotional ties to the United States. People who were the best damn unofficial ambassadors the US could ever have abroad. Folks that Americans the world over were proud of.

I note that right now all we seem to be doing is going around and around with no solutions in sight. The US government isn't taking the situation seriously and the American public only does so when that horrible list comes out every quarter. And Americans are still marching down to the consulates and making appointments.

What a godawful mess this is, mes amis. Is there any hope that we can resolve this? I really don't know but over the past few years my faith in the basic fairness and justice of the American system, in the will of the US government to protect its citizens abroad and exhibit at least some concern for our well-being, and in the goodwill of my fellow citizens back in the US has been dangerously eroded. And, frankly, if those things go, then there really isn't any reason to remain a citizen, is there? "

http://thefranco-americanflophouse.b...nciations.html

Many of the 40 comments to the blog post are also enlightening.

It'll be interesting to see what the yearly figure for renunciations is. A recent post on IBS of a visit to the Vancouver consulate during which the consul was asked if they were getting many people giving up their citizenship and the reply was "too many to process". The poster also asked if this info was being pass up the line to the policymakers, "absolutely" was the reply. This is just one consulate.

It's also been reported here on the forum that the embassy in Bern's waiting time for an appointment has gone from around the 5/6 week mark when I renounced in March 2013 to nearly a year now.

Renunciations in Bern

So how many are they dealing with? Too many to process perhaps?

Evidently renunciations are up yet again. 2,999 for 2013, well past the previous record of 1,781 set in 2011 and a 221% increase on the 932 figure for 2012.

http://www.rense.com/general96/allaboard.html

http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwo...fatca-express/

Bets being taken now on what the 2014 figure will be.