On Thursday, February 28, the House voted to approve the already passed Senate version of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) which, though not perfect and despite the fact that overseas Americans were absent from the act, did not include last-minute tweaks that could have seriously weakened it.
Following the 236 to 138 vote, the bill now heads for the...
FAWCO is happy to announce that Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Mike Honda (D-CA), have introduced H.R.597, legislation to create a Federal commission to study the impact of government policies upon the millions of Americans living overseas.
“Americans living and working abroad are our country’s informal ambassadors and help strengthen the U.S. economy and promote American influence. Yet they too...
Americans Abroad are Denied Access to Banking and Investment Opportunities
Americans living and working overseas should have the right to banking and investment services, where they reside and in the United States. This is critical in the modern world. Americans abroad should not be subject to discriminatory policies that restrict or shut down banking relationships.
Many banks in the United...
The Impact of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)
FATCA, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, targets those who evade paying taxes by hiding assets in undisclosed foreign bank accounts but negatively impacts and penalizes American citizens overseas and US economic interests.
FATCA requires Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs) to provide annual reports to the IRS, either directly or through...
According to the post-election survey conducted by FAWCO partner Overseas Vote Foundation (OVF), the overseas voting process was clearly improved in the first full federal election since passage of the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act of 2009.
An article by Brian Knowlton in the New York Times shows that while a little over 20% of UOCAVA voters were...
Two members of the Americans Abroad Caucus (Representatives Mike Honda of California and Carolyn Maloney of New York) have been joined by Representative Jim McDermott of Washington in requesting that the U.S. Government Accountability Office conduct a review of the potential impacts of any reduction in or elimination of current I.R.S provisions for exclusion of foreign-earned income and housing costs...