By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

U.S. expats here now have a way to express their unhappiness with Washington with the click of an internet button.

American Citizens Abroad has embarked on a new campaign that allows any citizen to contact relevant lawmakers even if they do not have the time to pen a letter. The campaign is called Tax Fairness for Americans Overseas: An Idea Worth Fighting For!

The campaign's goal is to have the U.S. Congress hold hearings on proposed changes in the tax code that would benefit overseas Americans. The organization is an advocate and lobbying group for U.S. citizens living overseas and has been promoting restructuring of the U.S. tax code for years.

The long-term effort has had some success. U.S. Rep. George Holding, a South Carolina Republican, introduced in January a bill that would convert the U.S. tax system to one that is residency-based. Right now, all U.S. citizens, regardless of where they live and work, are subject to U.S. income tax, although there are some exemptions.

The push to change to tax code that affects U.S. expats seems to be bipartisan because some of the biggest advocates of changes are Democrats.

American Citizens Abroad said it believes that it is essential for hearings to be held on the tax and compliance issues for Americans overseas.  As it says on its website, hearings are the next step in the legislative process and need to be held so that the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee can hear about the wide range of tax compliance issues facing the overseas Americans community from stakeholders and citizens.

Individual citizens can contact their representatives easily, according to Mary Louise Serrato, the organization's executive director. “Supporters simply click on our prompt, fill-in their U.S. voting address and click.  There is even room for supporters to add a short personal message,” she said. The computerized system automatically sends the message to members of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee and senators and representatives in the state the expats has listed as their U.S. home. The website AmericanAbroad.org

The message to lawmakers says residence-based taxation should be adopted and that the citizen supports having the House Ways & Means Committee hold hearings on all the tax policy and tax compliance issues affecting U.S. citizens living and working overseas: tax policy, tax compliance, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act repatriation tax and the Passport Revocation Provision, to name a few.

U.S. citizens abroad now pay federal income tax each year on any money generated from U.S. sources. That could include rents, pensions, interest and even salaries. Many in Costa Rica have been troubled by additional reporting required by local banks because of the  Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act and the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts.  Technically, U.S. citizens who earn money in Costa Rica also should be paying U.S. tax on the income. However, there is an annual exemption of more than $100,000 so most expats face no additional taxes on foreign income.

Around the world, however, many Americans pay double taxes, both to a foreign country and to the United States because they have high income, perhaps from investments, petroleum drilling, other high-salaried jobs or inheritances.

Some wealthy U.S. citizens have surrendered their nationality to avoid U.S. taxes. The United States is one of the few countries that taxes its expat citizens on money earned abroad.









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