Dual US-EU passport - which should I use?

[LisKat]

Here's a tricky question!

I have both an EU and a US passport and will shortly be relocating to Singapore. Which passport should I use to register in Singapore? Does it make a difference?

Thanks! :)

[kasiapoleszak]

I have an EU passport, my husband has a US one - from Singapore's perspective there is no difference (at least in our case).

But if you get a job under a US passport, you will officially be making money for which you need to pay taxes in the US.

[x9200]

This is not the passport what makes one to pay the taxes.

[Strong Eagle]

I have an EU passport, my husband has a US one - from Singapore's perspective there is no difference (at least in our case).

But if you get a job under a US passport, you will officially be making money for which you need to pay taxes in the US.

This is not correct. It is your US citizenship which will force you to pay US taxes, regardless of whether you have a passport or not.

[Strong Eagle]

Here's a tricky question!

I have both an EU and a US passport and will shortly be relocating to Singapore. Which passport should I use to register in Singapore? Does it make a difference?

Thanks!

It really depends on where you plan to travel the majority of the time. If to the USA, then use the US passport... you need your US passport to enter the USA. If you go to the EU more frequently, then choose that passport. For other travel, it doesn't matter.

[kasiapoleszak]

Of course it's not the passport that makes you pay the taxes. But if one wants to be creative about their income information, it's easier to claim there wasn't any if there is no record of it in Singapore. I'm just saying.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Don't put it in a bank here in Singapore then. They now report all financial accounts of US PP holders/citizens to the US just as the Swiss now do.

[zzm9980]

But if you get a job under a US passport, you will officially be making money for which you need to pay taxes in the US.

Very bad advice.

If you have a US passport (or greencard) at all, you're legally required to pay taxes on income you earn anywhere in the world. I can assure you the US IRS does not care which passport you entered the country on. Most companies here will not report said income to the US IRS even if you tell the company you're American. It's your legal requirement to voluntarily disclose that information to the US IRS.

[aster]

Of course it's not the passport that makes you pay the taxes. But if one wants to be creative about their income information, it's easier to claim there wasn't any if there is no record of it in Singapore. I'm just saying.

Forgive me for saying this, but have you just been rescued from a remote, tropical island after like two decades?

The US is the most aggressive tax regime in this world. Hiding from it is the hardest, and the penalties are the most draconian in the world. What you're saying is the equivalent of asking whether it's ok to burn a copy of the Koran in some main square somewhere in Riyadh.

If you happen to rob a bank or even knock off Fort Knox and get away with it, there is a statute of limitations. If you owe Uncle Sam a dime, there is not, and you will end up on a gov't-paid holiday with pre-arranged accommodation and meals (unfortunately no cable tv, room service, swimming pool or booze as part of the deal) even when you're 90+ years old.

Yeah, I agree that US tax code is ridiculously unfair and no other developed country in the world enslaves its citizens in this manner, making them its vassals regardless of where they live. But you need to decide whether you want to continue being a US citizen and pay what your overseers demand of you or change that status. Facing their wrath is not a logical option.

[GSM8]

Yeah, I agree that US tax code is ridiculously unfair and no other developed country in the world enslaves its citizens in this manner, making them its vassals regardless of where they live. But you need to decide whether you want to continue being a US citizen and pay what your overseers demand of you or change that status. Facing their wrath is not a logical option.

I can't express it any more clearly than Aster just did, so just copying his quote. US taxation of expats and citizenship-based-taxation is patently unfair, but it is not an excuse to flout the law. If you feel strongly about it, become active in some of the groups advocating for the US to adopt the international norm of residence-based-taxation, and write to your congressperson etc. to make these views heard. Thats what I did, and posted some of my thoughts on a few other threads on this forum. Google search for terms like CBT or RBT also gives ideas on what individuals can do towards achieving this goal.

[kasiapoleszak]

First of all, I'm not advocating for anybody to break the law. And for the record - everybody in my family pays their taxes. Including myself and I don't even have a green card. Just because I married an American I now how to contribute to IRAS spoils. Yay for America.

But there are different situations in life. I have known people who held double passports and couldn't care less about it until they realised that they have to pay taxes in the US. If you have never lived in the US and you don't intend to, it's worth considering whether you want to start generating income that will be associated with that passport. Obviously this means you will need to give up your citizenship and that's what people I know have done. And trust me, it was much easier to convince IRAS that they never intended to break the law just because they never worked using their US passport.

[sundaymorningstaple]

First of all, I'm not advocating for anybody to break the law. And for the record - everybody in my family pays their taxes. Including myself and I don't even have a green card. Just because I married an American I now how to contribute to IRAS spoils. Yay for America.

But there are different situations in life. I have known people who held double passports and couldn't care less about it until they realised that they have to pay taxes in the US. If you have never lived in the US and you don't intend to, it's worth considering whether you want to start generating income that will be associated with that passport. Obviously this means you will need to give up your citizenship and that's what people I know have done. And trust me, it was much easier to convince IRAS that they never intended to break the law just because they never worked using their US passport.

Not true. I've been married to a local Singaporean woman for the past 31 years and she's never paid US taxes. She doesn't have to as I never started. She was a Green Card holder for 3 years early on in our marriage but as we decided to stay here, it was silly to spend the money to send her to Hawaii for 3 days every years just to get a chop in her passport. As she wasn't working back then, I saw no reason to include her on my return as I didn't need the tax break back then. So, as I shared an office with the US INS officer here in Singapore at that time, he just advised me to give it up and 3 to 6 months before I decide to go back to the US, to reapply and also indicate her previous number as the vetting had already been done.

Anyway, as I've never taken advantage of using her as a dependent or using Married tax rates, there was no reason to include her and possibly have to pay additional taxes on her later. Filed as Head of Household for 24 years though based on my qualifying children. So, just marrying a US citizen doesn't automatically cause you to pay US taxes. And your US passport has absolutely nothing to do with the IRS. Only INS. Citizenship is not conferred by getting a US passport. You can have citizenship without ever owning a US passport, but as a citizen, your liability to INS is secured, passport or not.

[kasiapoleszak]

Again, it all depends. We are taking advantage of the tax breaks by filing our taxes together and we intend to move back to the US in a few years. Since I don't have a green card right now, it will be easier for me to get one later if I can demonstrate that I have already been paying taxes. At least that's what the US embassy has advised us to do. Quite honestly it's mind boggling to try and make sense of the US tax regulations.

Also, you are right about the citizenship. I knew a lady who was born in the US, never had a US passport and 30 years later IRS came knocking asking for money.

[bgd]

The tax issue aside, it makes no difference.

I use 2 passports on every journey - one to leave and enter Sg and the other to enter and leave whichever country I'm visiting. The reason is I have few pages left in my Sg registered passport and I'm trying to make it last.

So perhaps select the passport with the most free pages if you intend to travel and collect stamps. Good a reason as any.

[LisKat]

Here's a tricky question!

I have both an EU and a US passport and will shortly be relocating to Singapore. Which passport should I use to register in Singapore? Does it make a difference?

Thanks!

It really depends on where you plan to travel the majority of the time. If to the USA, then use the US passport... you need your US passport to enter the USA. If you go to the EU more frequently, then choose that passport. For other travel, it doesn't matter.

Thanks Strong Eagle! So (just to be absolutely sure!) In Singapore I can use one or the other indifferently, regardless of whether I am opening a bank account, getting a Long Term Visit Pass or being hired by a local company... correct?