ACA is pleased to see RBT Coalition call on Congress to hold hearings.

American Citizens Abroad, Inc. (ACA), a Washington, DC based, non-profit 501(c)(4), non-partisan organization representing US citizens living and working overseas is part of the Residence-Based Taxation Coalition (RBT Coalition), a consortium of organizations that has come together in support of adoption of Residence-based taxation (RBT) for US citizens living and working overseas.

The RBT Coalition has written to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the US House Ways & Means Committee as well as the Chairman and Ranking Member of the US House Ways & Means Committee Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures, requesting that the committees hold hearings on the tax and compliance issues of US citizens living and working overseas (click for letter). These two committees are the starting point for tax legislation in Congress. 

The RBT Coalition is non-partisan and it does not advocate for a particular approach to drafting RBT.  It leaves it to Congress to develop detailed provisions.  It simply advocates for a change in the general approach to taxing US citizens living and working overseas.  Individual members of the RBT Coalition have their own ideas on the details and these should be presented to the Congress through official government hearings. 

“ACA has long advocated for adoption of RBT and believes that the next step in the process of advancing on any legislation or regulation to address the problems facing US overseas taxpayers are hearings,” said Charles Bruce, ACA Legal Counsel and ACA Global Foundation Chairman, “We are pleased that the RBT Coalition is joining the call for hearings.”

The RBT letter notes that with hearings all the relevant issues could be laid on the table and all the interested parties could be heard.  Americans residing abroad and their businesses could tell their stories and describe the problems they experience.  Organizations representing US citizens overseas can also testify and provide valuable information, data and research. 

“Hearings for this community of taxpayers is long and coming,” noted Jonathan Lachowitz, ACA Chairman, “Never in the history of the US Congress has this community had an opportunity to officially put on record their problems and issues.  Our job is not to draft legislation but to give the Congress the information, research, and data for them to find the right solutions.  The US Congress has held hearings on problems facing communities much smaller than overseas taxpayers and Congress owes it to these taxpayers to hear them and take their issues into serious consideration.”

The RBT Coalition represents organizations from a wide range of industries and interests, organizations representing US citizens living overseas, professional organizations, AmChams and tax advocacy groups.  Organizations interested joining the RBT Coalition should contact info@rbtcoalition.org. 

“Every organization working to advance RBT should be a member of this important coalition, all ideas are welcome, and the RBT Coalition supports no one platform,” said Marylouise Serrato, ACA Executive Director, “Our combined objective is to move away from the current citizenship-based taxation (CBT) regime so it’s pretty straight-forward.  If your organization supports that goal, then there is no reason you should not sign on to the RBT Coalition today.”