Getting our FATCA straight

This is quite a fascinating point for many reasons, and one worth looking at from all angles.

The FATCA agreement is usually signed between the competent authorities of the US and the partner jurisdiction. This role is generally assigned to the tax authorities of both countries, hence the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and in the case of Trinidad and Tobago, the Board of Inland Revenue (BIR).

Trinidad and Tobago already has a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with the United States since 1989 which already allows for the exchange of financial data and under this law the US can already request data on American citizens. It is stated that the Tax Exchange Bill will possibly replace the TIEA, but the TIEA will be affixed as a schedule to the Bill.

The concern being raised by the Opposition Leader probably relates to Clause 7 of the Bill, which states that the minister may provide any information obtained by him and also request and receive any information required by him under any law.

Perhaps the minister can state the reasons as to the need to change the intention of the current tax treaty to one that allows more than is required under FATCA . A comparison to the FATCA laws legislated by other jurisdictions does not reveal a similar clause. It is hoped that this is not a means of surreptitiously circumventing citizens’ rights. If it is true that this Bill is almost a replica of the one that was being drafted by the last government, as the current Government makes it seem, then it begs the question as to why the Opposition Leader is concerned now.

We as citizens however must be worried either way as it does not seem that our politicians can be trusted to seek our interests.

In essence, the wording of Clause 7 of the Bill should be more aligned to Article 4 of the current TIEA whereby the BIR should be explicitly named as the competent authority and the one that will be assigned to collect the relevant info from the foreign financial institutions and transmit it to the IRS.

The Opposition Leader’s concern seems to indicate that she is worried about the information of private Trinidad and Tobago citizens, but FATCA legislation should only be used by the BIR to collect and transmit data on US taxpayers, not TT citizens. The Bill should only be used for the purpose it was intended; that is not debatable as there should be no question of this.

The only issue of private Trinidad and Tobago’s citizens’ data that can be a concern is under the agreement for reciprocity whereby TT can/will automatically obtain information on TT citizens living abroad (US). Trinidad and Tobago has entered into a Model 1A Intergovernmental Agreement which allows for this reciprocity.

Maybe those who are concerned with this issue will feel better to know that the US may not necessarily be in a position to reciprocate currently. It is still unsure whether its own laws even allow this. If this is an issue, we can agree that there is no real cause for worry. Put country before people and recognise the dire consequences of non-compliance with FATCA .

It is important to recognise that compliance with FATCA affects US citizens but noncompliance affects us all.

It is the latter that should worry us all. Why do our leaders think that the United States would facilitate a country that has made no serious effort to pass legislation and operationalise FATCA in the prescribed timeline? Have there been any test runs as yet? Countries such as Jamaica and Barbados signed an agreement since 2014 and for both countries it was entered into force in September 2015, yet we are fiddling while entertaining the idea that a lack of responsibility would be glossed over by the US authorities.

Those of us who secretly hold the view that God is a “Trini” may hope that US authorities give us a “chance”. But sadly, they may find themselves delusional. Given the game of brinkmanship that clearly is being practised and the washing of the hands like Pontius Pilate, it is the country that will pay the price for this gross negligence