Mexico - Following yesterday's ruling from Judge Thomas M. Rose, Democrats Abroad have called for immediate action by Treasury and the IRS that would relieve the severe and unnecessary effects FATCA has on innocent Americans living abroad.

Democrats Abroad favors a switch to residency-based taxation, which would largely eliminate the problems that FATCA causes overseas Americans. Failing that, we believe that putting pressure on the IRS and Treasury to adopt immediate changes will be more successful in the short term than trying to litigate FATCA out of existence.

This summer, Democrats Abroad and the non-partisan organizations representing Americans living overseas called for members of Congress to support a 'Safe Harbor' from FATCA reporting for Americans living abroad.* Over 16,500 messages were sent by Americans abroad to Congress asking their representatives to sign on to a letter to the IRS and Treasury calling for "Safe Harbor" relief for Americans living overseas.

Katie Solon, International Chair of Democrats Abroad, said:

"Although laws to catch tax cheats are absolutely right, FATCA unnecessarily harms the majority of Americans living overseas. The impact FATCA has on law-abiding Americans abroad, however unintended, is significant and serious, and needs an immediate solution.

FATCA can be fixed faster by the IRS than it can be defeated in the courts. This is a position supported by Republicans and Democrats alike in Congress. By modernizing the current tax rules with a 'safe harbor' from FATCA reporting for Americans living abroad, the IRS could overnight eliminate the need for individuals and their banks to file reports on accounts held in their country of residence.

Democrats Abroad has been working for the past few months with the bi-partisan leaders of the Americans Abroad Caucus to build Congressional support to fix FATCA, as we believe the Treasury and the IRS will ultimately back reform now that elected representatives have called for an immediate change."

* Footnote: Democrats Abroad calls on Treasury and the IRS to establish a "safe harbor" from FATCA reporting for accounts of law-abiding Americans living abroad via the establishment of a Same Country Safe Harbor provision, in which:

• no American living legally abroad would have to file a FATCA report on accounts held in his or her country of legal residence; and

• no foreign financial institutions would have to file FATCA reports on the accounts of US-tax compliant Americans residing legally in the same country.

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With country committees and local chapters in over 80 countries around the world, Democrats Abroad is the official Democratic Party organization for the millions of Americans living outside the United States. It works to advance the Democratic Party's principles and represent the interests of party members who live overseas.