Turks lining up to renounce US citizenship


Due to the new tax laws in the U.S., rich Turks who were born in the U.S. are queuing up to give up their American citizenship, according to the U.S.-based website TurkishNY. The website said that due to the economic crisis and the new taxes, being an American citizen now has more disadvantages than advantages.The website stressed that while giving birth in the U.S. was highly popular before, it lost its attraction after the 2008 economic crisis. Tax audits are also increasing and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act came into force last year, which obliges all foreign accounts to be reported to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Accordingly, American citizens will be taxed up to 39.6 percent of their income earned in Turkey or in any other country. The website also underscored that the inheritance tax is also intimidating wealthy U.S. citizens abroad. "Therefore, anyone who followed the trend of giving birth in the U.S. is not panicking about their earnings and properties, and the number of Turkish citizens who have applied to renounce their children's U.S. citizenship is pretty high," said the website.