Off to the lawyer tomorrow...

[chrishansenhome]

I have been moved by keith_london's blogposts about the United States to finally go somewhere with renouncing my American citizenship. Tomorrow I'm off to the law firm of Gary Ferman, who specialise in citizenship and immigration issues. I'll be speaking with him about the consequences of renunciation, not particularly financial ones (since I do not have enough money or resources to trigger any of the horrid penalties that the US places on people who renounce their citizenship) but focussing on travel consequences.

For example, does it become more difficult to enter the US as a foreigner when you've renounced your citizenship?

I am doing this mostly to simplify my life. I now have to manage my affairs to take into account two different systems of law, tax, and citizenship. Why should I, a UK citizen, be barred from going to Cuba for a Caribbean holiday simply because I am also an American citizen? Why should my ISA (tax-free savings account in the UK) be taxable in the United States but not taxable here? Why should I have to put up with intrusive questioning at the US border even though I am currently a US citizen?

I realise this may make some readers of my blog uneasy. Well, imagine coming to the US four times in 2008 and, the fourth time, being suspected of money laundering and getting the third degree about what I do for a living, why I'm coming to the US, and how much money I have. I get no privileges from my US citizenship (besides the honour of being able to vote for Federal offices) and lots of grief. Better to give it up.

People have said to me, "Well, you never know—someday you may want to move back to the US."

To them I say, "Imagine, if you will, an unemployed software test manager who has had diabetes for more than 20 years and a heart attack 3 years ago moving back to the US from the UK. This person would go from totally free health care, including free medications, to having no health insurance at all and having to pay full whack for his health care and prescriptions. In addition, imagine that this person has a civil partner who is not a US citizen. Thus, in moving back to the US this person would have to forego living with his civil partner. After 11 years of partnership, this might be a bit of a hardship."

I think it is a clear choice. For younger people who are not ill and whose full-time job prospects (and health insurance benefits) in the United States are good, it might be a struggle. For me, it's clear. Living in the UK is my future. I am now a European. I benefit from a health care system that gives me first-class care which is free at the point of delivery, including all medication. I feel patriotic about the UK, and, for all its faults, I love it still.

Nothing will happen tomorrow except that I will be better informed about my choices and their consequences. After that, I shall make the final decision, and I will, of course, keep you all informed.

However, so that any super-patriotic USans might not get so upset they say naughty things in the comments that they might regret later, I'm screening all comments on this post.

Comments

[trawnapanda.livejournal.com]

check on the UK passport. I know for my Canadian passport I had a choice of whether to get it to say my place of birth or not, and it may well be the same for the UK one. Now I've never had the need or want to disguise or conceal my birthplace (Northampton), but I know the option is there - for people around the middle-east, it can be very sticky for people born in country A to enter country B because of bad A-B relations.

So, check and see if you can get your UK passport to omit your place of birth.

[chrishansenhome.livejournal.com]

Hm...interesting.

Only hitch might be that, from my accent, I am almost indubitably either American or Canadian and my answers to their questions will reveal me as an ex-American almost immediately.

I could take accent lessons, I suppose...

Better to face it, I think. But the idea is intriguing, thanks. I will raise it with the lawyer tomorrow.

[trawnapanda.livejournal.com]

I certainly wouldn't suggest lying to the border officials in the immigration hall, just suggesting a step you could take that might lower a potential red flag.

I don't know if I've told you this story: last summer while at Lambeth, I met a delightful lesbian couple, one of whose names is eluding me, so I'll call then Ann and Ellen. Ann is American, Ellen is English. They've been a couple for donkeys years, and they have a Vermont civil union. They have a home in Brattleboro VT, and the Episcopal church there is very much their parish family.

However, Ann has run out of immigration and visa options, and now can only come as a visitor. She cannot be in the US for more than 91 days at a stretch, and must have been out of the country longer than her proposed stay as she enters. It gets expensive and isolating, as you can imagine.

Like many households, they have pets; and one of the cats, like Ellen, was born in Derby. The cat has all the paperwork and can live in the US; but Ellen can't.

Ellen is out everywhere except in the immigration hall, because she could be denied entry and she could be deported for 10 years and that's not a risk she can take.

If either woman was male, they could marry in a ceremony that would carry weight with the US immigration folk. If Ellen was a cat she could move to the States.

A sobering tale. So I certainly understand your deciding that the UK is home-forever.

ah, I just found the blog post I made about it. Ellen = Janet, Anne = Sissi.