“Kathleen, Lief, and Company, I hope that you have heard about the soon-to-be infamous Ex-Patriot Act. It is a sad day when we as a country announce publicly that the United States is now a financial tar pit and that young entrepreneurs should stay far away. It is one misguided way to deal with our immigration problems.”
–John B., United States
Yes, we have read about this, and we have written about it in brief. This proposed law is likely so much blustering by the senators involved…posturing and politicking…not generally expected to pass.
Still, it makes for good fodder for newsletter editors like us. Something outrageous to react to. The thing is, there’s been so much that’s been so outrageous about goings-on in the United States lately that we’re worn out.
We think it’s time to take our own advice.
We’ll continue reporting on these kinds of developments–new legislation related to (and restricting) Americans’ abilities to live and invest where and how they choose, new and changed IRS filing requirements, new hurdles to do with banking offshore, moving money around, investing overseas, etc.–in this e-letter and, especially, in Lief’s Offshore Living Letter.
You need to know about this stuff (and so do we). We can agree that so much of what’s happening in the States and beyond right now is heavy-handed, ill-conceived, misguided, and worse. But, now, today, we can’t help but think: Enough.
Most Americans aren’t interested in giving up their U.S. citizenship…and needn’t be. Most of us don’t have a lot in common with Eduardo Saverin.
Those of us who aren’t IPO billionaires needn’t be pre-occupied with all the drama. For the rest of us, the idea and implications of expatriation are not as relevant as the options and opportunities for expat’ing–for living, retiring, investing, doing business, banking, even obtaining a second passport in another country. These are all important ideas, perhaps more important than ever in the current climate, but they have nothing to do with expatriation.
These ideas have everything, though, to do with improving our lives and our lifestyles. With ensuring the best futures possible for ourselves and our families.
The good news is that we have much more control over our futures than we might recognize. Let’s start there.
