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I feel like I'm in crazytown when I express distress about taxation - literally people forcibly taking away your property - and ppl act like I'm the crazy one. Sure, you could argue that this forcible theft is worth it, and I'll respect that, but it's still not crazy to be upset.

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Why don't you leave the US? If the answer amounts to you like the public goods here - roads, relatively clean air, relatively low crime, etc etc etc - then in fact what you're saying is you want to free ride, i.e., enjoy the benefits of taxes, without actually paying.

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US still taxes citizens that move out of the US.

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This is a common misunderstanding. It requires that they file a tax return (which they shouldn't, IMO). But most US citizens living abroad that I've spoken to say that they pay very low or zero US taxes, unless most of their income is actually US source.

Babak S

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US citizens can still vote in the US elections even if living abroad. Taxation with representation is a good way to keep the connection with expats. There are also many tax treaties with various countries to avoid double taxation. What's the problem?

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It's only avoiding double taxation up to a point. And the US is basically the only developed nation with this rule; nearly every other country, very sensibly, does not tax their citizens when their citizens aren't consuming the resources of that country.

9:00 PM · Apr 24, 2021

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Not quite. Canadians must pay taxes if they have substantial ties back home. They must file for nonresidency not to pay and they can hardly vote if abroad. I sympathize w not liking taxes at high rates and complex rules. But some taxes need to be collected to run the government.

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Actually, it does not avoid double taxation at all. Double taxation is defined in the takings clause that the US puts in every tax treaty. Americans are subject to the whole US tax system with some carve outs required by treaty or to give preference to a constituency.