Confessions of an Ex-American Part II

Although I planned to get Swiss Citizenship, I did not plan to give up my American. I worked my way through Swiss Permis A, B and C. I had to be a resident 12 years to apply for the passport. It took another three years eight months and three days and a number of interviews at the village, canton and national levels plus much paperwork for acceptance.

In my final interview I was asked if I'd seen the morning paper with a story about corruption of a government building. They were aghast when I said it was wonderful until I explained that a problem cannot be corrected until it is known. They laughed when I said the last French book I read was a translation by Mary Higgins Clark but that I read Amélie Nothrom, even though she is Belgian.

The big day came for me to take my oath. I symbolically threw my paper Permis B in the trash. A man in a Medieval hat and cloak led the 90 future citizens through the Alabama Room. Yes, Alabama for a treaty that concluded the American Civil War involving Britain which was signed there in 1872.

My first ballot package was on my seat and I voted in my first Swiss Election a few days later. We took the oath of citizenship, sang the national anthem (I sang softly because I have a terrible voice) and then went to another hall for pan surprise, champage and a gift picture book about Geneva.

As a news junkie, I continued to follow the news in several countries including the U.S. A colleague of mine, another American taking Swiss nationality and I followed U:S. politics, especially legislation we cared about and I made a lot of calls to Congress on issues I cared about. I started the conversations saying, "I'm an ex-pat and I vote. I didn't always say in another state  or district.

In October, I was spending a month writing in my Southern French Studio that I had bought for $18,000. The postman brought the ballot. In French, I said, "Good. I can vote for the American president."

"Who are you voting for."

"Obama."

"Good, I'll give you the ballot."

At the post when I handed the ballot in the person asked whom I was voting for. When I told her, she said she wouldn't throw it away. I don't know if they were joking.

All went well until Carl Levin and Elise Bean among other congress people created FATCA, a 2010 U.S. federal law requiring all non-U.S. foreign financial institutions (FFIs) to search their records for customers with indicators of a connection to the U.S., including records of birth or prior residency in the U.S. 

Every cent an American earns anywhere in the world is subject to U.S. taxation even if the money never touched U.S. soil. It is the only country that requires this. It also applies to Green Card holders who have left the country and will never return and will never earn any more money in the U.S.

As a result my bank told me they would close my account. If they were caught with an American on their books, they would be shut out of the U.S. market and pay huge penalties. 

People who had fiduciary responsibility in companies or other organizations lost their positions under the bank threat. It wasn't just Switzerland, it was all over the world. The application of FATCA varied.

Other Americans were threatened with account closings. Mortgages and loans were called in. It applies to insurance and any other financial programs.

My bank gave me time to renounce to get the Certificate of Loss of Nationality from the U.S. Government.

Tomorrow, I will write about the process of going to the Embassy to renounce and on Sunday my continued fight with others.