GC renouncement Questions

Y

Yee Man Chan

Registered Users (C)
I have an employment based GC. I am planning to move back to my home country for good. I am not sure what to do with my GC.

Here are my questions:

0) What forms do I need to fill out to formally renounce my GC?

1) I have worked for 10 years in the US. According to the SS letters I received, I am eligible for SS benefits. What does that mean? Am I still entitled if I renounced my GC? If I am entitled, how do I make a claim from overseas?

2) What are the advantages of formally renouncing my GC as oppose to just let it sit here in my drawer?

3) I know that many people didn't renounce their GC and then move out of the country. Then they come back once in a while and told the immigration officer that they were out only a few months. What are the punishments if they find out you lied?

Thanks a lot in advance.
 
Re:

Just out of curiousity , why don't you take up US Citizenship if you are eligible and then move overseas ? If you are from India you can apply for Overseas citizenship of India and live and work in India just like any other India citizen. This should address almost all the questions you've asked. You would get SS benefits no matter where you live if you are a US citizen. It will also avoid the difficult situation of having to maintaing physical presence in USA for preserving the permanent residency.
 
Desi4ever said:
Just out of curiousity , why don't you take up US Citizenship if you are eligible and then move overseas ? If you are from India you can apply for Overseas citizenship of India and live and work in India just like any other India citizen. This should address almost all the questions you've asked. You would get SS benefits no matter where you live if you are a US citizen. It will also avoid the difficult situation of having to maintaing physical presence in USA for preserving the permanent residency.
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I can apply for US citizenship but I just don't really like this idea. My current passport allows me to travel to most countries visa-free already, so I don't really need that from US passport. Plus, where I am from has low tax rate, if I maintain US citizenship, then I need to pay quite a lot of US tax as well (does this apply to GC holders as well?)
 
Yee Man Chan said:
Plus, where I am from has low tax rate, if I maintain US citizenship, then I need to pay quite a lot of US tax as well (does this apply to GC holders as well?)
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YES, GCs have same tax responsibilities as US citizens.

A tax attorney maybe able to give more details but in brief, if you are a GC or USC:
"All your worldwide income is taxable under US tax, no matter where you reside".

Of course you might get credit for income taxes paid in other countries...but that is the details part.
 
Yee Man Chan said:
I have an employment based GC. I am planning to move back to my home country for good. I am not sure what to do with my GC.

Here are my questions:

0) What forms do I need to fill out to formally renounce my GC?
Read
http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/legal_permanent_residents.html

Question:I am a legal permanent resident, but I wish to abandon my LPR status because I am now living abroad. How do I do so?

Ans:If you wish to surrender your green card, please come to our office at 7:30 a.m. with your green card, passport, and a completed form I-407 (Abandonment of Lawful Permanent Resident Status). You may obtain this form at http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/lpr_forms.html. A consular officer will interview you and accept your application. If you would like to apply for a visitor visa on the day you surrender the green card, you should contact our scheduling service VFS (http://www.vfs-usa.co.in) to make an appointment for a visitor visa interview. If you would like to only surrender your green card and not apply for a visitor visa, please join the line for pending immigrant visa cases and present this e-mail to the employee outside when you arrive at
7:30 a.m. Please note that completing the process may require several hours depending on conditions, and you will not be allowed to enter the consulate with any of the prohibited items described on our website at http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/requirements_for_visitors.html. Our office will not provide any acknowledgement receipt if applicants opt to submit the I-407 and green card by mail.



1) I have worked for 10 years in the US. According to the SS letters I received, I am eligible for SS benefits. What does that mean? Am I still entitled if I renounced my GC? If I am entitled, how do I make a claim from overseas?
-----------others have replied or talk to IRS
2) What are the advantages of formally renouncing my GC as oppose to just let it sit here in my drawer?
----------------------it is easy to get Visitor visa if you surrender your green card to US consulate with form I-407 (Abandonment of Lawful Permanent Resident Status)

3) I know that many people didn't renounce their GC and then move out of the country. Then they come back once in a while and told the immigration officer that they were out only a few months. What are the punishments if they find out you lied?
----------------------- at POE they can refuse entry or can send you to appear before Immigration judge
Thanks a lot in advance.
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---------------- Read the Link from IRS
http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10137.html
http://www.ssa.gov/international/
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p4588.pdf
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/international/article/0,,id=97324,00.html
http://www.irs.gov/faqs/faq13.html
 
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Thanks for your replies.

I know many GC people who didn't pay any US taxes when they were staying overseas for an extended period of time. Do they theoretically owe US government a lot of tax money now? If caught, I am assuming to have to pay. However, there are great difficulties to track foreign income, so I guess probably in the end, they won't have to pay a cent....:rolleyes:
 
You wouldn't happen to be from Singapore by any chance?

Yee Man Chan said:
I can apply for US citizenship but I just don't really like this idea. My current passport allows me to travel to most countries visa-free already, so I don't really need that from US passport. Plus, where I am from has low tax rate, if I maintain US citizenship, then I need to pay quite a lot of US tax as well (does this apply to GC holders as well?)
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You can officially abandon your GC by filing a Form I-407.

Remember once you give up your GC you can NOT undo your decision. So think carefully before deciding. Millions of people around the world would kill for a green card.

Citizens of many countries can receive social security payments even after they have left the United States for good. What is your country of citzenship? If you worked here for only 10 years your monthly social security check will be pretty small. It may not be worth the trouble.

In terms of tax liability, you already get a pretty healthy income exclusion from Congress. So unless you are at the top of the income bracket, you do not owe taxes to the U.S. government. Do you know what I mean?


Yee Man Chan said:
I have an employment based GC. I am planning to move back to my home country for good. I am not sure what to do with my GC.

Here are my questions:

0) What forms do I need to fill out to formally renounce my GC?

1) I have worked for 10 years in the US. According to the SS letters I received, I am eligible for SS benefits. What does that mean? Am I still entitled if I renounced my GC? If I am entitled, how do I make a claim from overseas?

2) What are the advantages of formally renouncing my GC as oppose to just let it sit here in my drawer?

3) I know that many people didn't renounce their GC and then move out of the country. Then they come back once in a while and told the immigration officer that they were out only a few months. What are the punishments if they find out you lied?

Thanks a lot in advance.
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thankful said:
You can officially abandon your GC by filing a Form I-407.

Remember once you give up your GC you can NOT undo your decision. So think carefully before deciding. Millions of people around the world would kill for a green card.

Citizens of many countries can receive social security payments even after they have left the United States for good. What is your country of citzenship? If you worked here for only 10 years your monthly social security check will be pretty small. It may not be worth the trouble.

In terms of tax liability, you already get a pretty healthy income exclusion from Congress. So unless you are at the top of the income bracket, you do not owe taxes to the U.S. government. Do you know what I mean?
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Yeah I am from HK. What is that "healthy income exclusion"? Do you mean if my overseas income is below this number, then I owe no US taxes? If this number is really high, maybe I can also think about becoming a US citizen.
 
Yee Man Chan said:
Yeah I am from HK. What is that "healthy income exclusion"? Do you mean if my overseas income is below this number, then I owe no US taxes? If this number is really high, maybe I can also think about becoming a US citizen.
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It is all explained on the IRS website.
 
Yee Man Chan said:
Yeah I am from HK. What is that "healthy income exclusion"? Do you mean if my overseas income is below this number, then I owe no US taxes? If this number is really high, maybe I can also think about becoming a US citizen.
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Please do not become a citizen. You have demonstrated your lack of love for the United States. We do no need you and you do not need us. Go back to your lovely China hell.
 
thankful said:
What is your country of citzenship? If you worked here for only 10 years your monthly social security check will be pretty small. It may not be worth the trouble.
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A couple hundred dollars every month for life after age 67 is certainly worth the trouble.
 
Yee Man Chan said:
Yeah I am from HK. What is that "healthy income exclusion"? Do you mean if my overseas income is below this number, then I owe no US taxes?
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Yes, you would pay no US income tax on your foreign earned income if you are a US citizen living overseas for the required amount of time and your foreign earned income is below the threshold (which is over $80,000). But you are still required to file a tax return to claim that exemption.
 
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you may be able to collect SS money for now, but nobody knows what will happen in the future.. Knowing that SS money will be in short in 30 years, I wouldn't be surprised that US gov decides not to allow foreigners to collect SS benefit unless living in the US.
 
Jackolantern said:
A couple hundred dollars every month for life after age 67 is certainly worth the trouble.
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It depends on what other income the person will have. Only 40 SS credits will probably yield you a pittance due to the required formula they use to calculate payments.
 
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