OT: It could happen here

Is this anything like the United States SSA7162 form? I know a number of US expats in South America who have dreadful difficulty in a) receiving the form in the first place and b) getting it delivered back again. I understand that it has to be completed on paper so that it can show a real signature, not an electronic one. Two of them lost their payments for a while since non-return of the form left them declared dead until they proved otherwise. Fun and games, eh?

Nick

Two of my nephews were born in the USA and so the USA "claim" them as US nationals, for taxation purposes. They both renounced their US citizenship, leaving just their UK citizenship by virtue of British parents. This was done partly to avoid being taxed twice on their UK earnings (once by UK, as they would expect, and then also by US as part of the FATCA rules); they did this in advance of any inheritances that they might get from my parents, to avoid being taxed by the US on that.

Their other motivation was to avoid the interminable tax-declaration forms that the IRS generate. The US doesn't have the concept of paying tax as you earn, so you get a humungous bill at the end of the year.

The 1980 Paperwork Reduction Act is about reducing administrative burden, not about saving paper. The name dates from the time when all admin was done on paper.

The act controls the length of forms, not the amount of paper they and their ancillaries are printed on. It applies equivalently to online forms where no paper is harmed.

I think a renaming might be in order.

Yes, that's the one. I don't have a problem getting it, it just arrives occasionally. I fill it in, make a copy, then send it off with a 'Proof of Posting' record.

That last part is certainly true for the self-employed.

My favourite personal story of US governmental chaos was of a time when I changed my visa while in the US. As a visa can only be stamped into a passport at a US Consulate or Embassy, of which there are none IN the US, I received a letter with, in very large letters across the top: "THIS IS A VISA" and then stated the details. Soon after, I made a trip back to the UK, and on my return to Detroit, Immigration refused me entry because my visa was not stamped in my passport. They let me in, stamping my passport "On Probation", as I had letters concerning my status. I went to the Detroit Immigration Office building the next day, showed them my Visa Letter, and they let me in properly, with the comment "They are always doing that at the airport".

I don't know how considerate US Immigration is these days under the <cough> current administration but I have a nice story to tell from a few years ago.

I had been on a bus which went straight from Dallas into Mexico and which simply didn't stop at the border. I guess this was because the driver hadn't noticed I was on board and all the other passengers were cross-border commuters who would just have been waved through.

A few weeks later I was in Canada and since I didn't have any exit record from the USA I decided to try and regularise my situation so that I didn't get illegal immigrant status.

I walked across the Rainbow Bridge at Niagara and had a chat with a US immigration agent. She looked up my file. Oh sure, she said. You're still legally in the USA so why don't you come into our little town of Niagara, take a look around, have a coffee and then when you're done I'll stamp you out again.

And that's what I did. She recognised me as I came back. Did you like our little town? she asked, as I passed through. For anyone who doesn't know it, Canadian Niagara is a bit like all the worst elements of Southport, Blackpool and Southend all rolled into one. American Niagara is still fairly quaint, almost a village.

Oh yes, I said. I loved it. Thank you!

Nick

Depending on when that was, there used to be a wonderful little museum in Niagara Falls. It fell into disrepair, and eventually the contents were disposed of. At about this time, there was a hunt for the mummy of Ramses 1, and it was found that this was one of these artefacts. Anybody who had seen the mummies in the museum had seen Ramses 1. He was returned to Egypt It was shown on, I think, National Geographic, or maybe PBS, under the title "Nova - The Mummy who would be King". It was a great story.