Here is an interesting Op-Ed that appears in today's Daily Mail, written by Andrew Lloyd Webber of all people:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-1173545…
Webber points out that the much ballyhooed tax rate increase in the UK is not an increase to a highest tax-bracket of 50%, but actually to an incredible 64.8% on that country's best and brightest. He goes on to warn about the inevitable tax flight from the UK by entrepreneurs en masse:
Last Thursday I met with a thirty-something guy. I absolutely depend on him in a highly technical area of theatrical production. For legal reasons he has to employ himself through his own company. Under the new tax regime, he will have to pay 13.3 per cent to employ himself before he pays himself anything. And then he will have to pay 51.5 per cent on what's left.This is a guy at the cutting edge of his profession who works all over the world. He is in demand in every major territory where entertainment is produced. He has a young wife and two children. Last Thursday he told me that he and his wife had decided that the UK was no longer where they wanted to live.
As tax rates in the States begin their insidious upward creep, I wouldn't be surprised to find a lot of America's top dogs looking for the exits. According to State Dept. data, U.S. citizenship renunciations in 2008 were DOUBLE that of 2000 to Canada alone.
So, if the U.S. goes the way of the U.K. and enacts an even more ridiculous tax rate than 36%, what tropical paradise will you be calling home???
Not to detract from the thread, but it's actually not a 64.8% tax...
(100% - 13.3% ) * (100% - 50%) = 56.16% Tax
Still pretty damn high.
The real number is actually 57.95%, though.
$1,000,000 - 13.3% = $867,000 $867,000 - 51.5% = $420,495 $1,000,000 - $420,495 = $579,505 in taxes, or 57.95%
Sure makes it easier to get out of bed and go to work in the morning.
I would never renounce my U.S. citizenship--EVER! However, I am beginning to transfer my skillset to entrepreneurship in South and Central America. With lower cost of living, a strong dollar-to-local currency ratio, endless vacuums of business opportunity, and lower tax rates (well, the entire continent+ is corrupt and you can buy your way out of taxes), I see little reason to continue to do business in the United States, particularly when corrupt, ignorant regimes like Barack Obama's are in power here. Since the U.S. is moving toward the dissolution of contract and bankruptcy law, I might as well do business in even more corrupt nations that don't respect contracts because at least my contract will be enforced by the gov't if I pay them to.
Ad dolore ea libero voluptatem rem qui. Officiis natus qui vitae optio corrupti magni corporis est. Deleniti magni ipsam impedit et.
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