August 25, 2010
Paris, France
It may be a bit ironic that I’m discussing expatriation today from Paris; this city was widely known as the world’s cultural capital for much of the 20th century, and it attracted a large number of intellectual giants who lived here as expats.
Gertrude Stein coined the term “lost generation” to define this group of expats who moved to Paris, most of them at the end of World War I. Many turned out to be incredibly famous– Hemingway, T.S. Eliot, Steinbeck, F. Scott Fitzgerald, etc., and their time as expats left a profound impact on literature.
Most of the expats were disillusioned by the Great War and felt alienated by the sheepish cultures in their home countries. Paris became the gathering place of their phyle– their group that was based on intellectual and philosophical commonality, not accidents of birth like skin color or national origin.
For this reason, I really respect their movement… and frankly, I expect a similar movement to emerge over the next several years as the disillusioned masses with portable financial and intellectual capital seek greener pastures overseas.
Many people may choose to punctuate this step by renouncing their primary citizenship… either as a political/philosophical statement, or simply to save money on taxes.
I’ve discussed this topic before, but I recognize that there are a lot of misconceptions on the subject, so I thought I would go right to the source and conduct an interview with Mark Nestmann.
(you can right click/’Save As’ the mp3 file to your computer/iPod as well).
Mark is a renowned asset protection lawyer, and part of his business is taking US citizens through the renunciation process. I’ve sat down with him today for a short 25 minute interview in which he discusses the ‘how-to’– why someone would want to do this, what are the benefits, and what are the consequences.
I guarantee that you’ll be surprised by his comments, it’s definitely worth your time to listen.
Afterwards, if you want to learn more, I’d encourage you to check out Mark’s book, The Billionaire’s Loophole, which you can find on his website. At $25, it’s incredibly inexpensive considering the first hand, valuable information that he provides, and I know of no greater authority on the subject.
To be clear, this subject (and Mark’s book) are not just for US citizens, so regardless of where you’re from, I think you’ll find the information valuable. Mark’s book, in fact, goes into specific detail about renunciation regimes in other countries.
