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Facebook co-founder 'unfriends' US to dodge taxes?
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Two top senators target Eduardo Saverin for renouncing citizenship
- Duration 5:20
- Date May 17, 2012
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Two top senators target Eduardo Saverin for renouncing citizenship
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-- from fox at 3 o'clock in New York City less than 24 hours from now traders on Wall Street to get their hands on a piece of history.
That's when shares of FaceBook are set to hit the NASDAQ ticker symbol FB.
But to lawmakers have just proposed stiff new penalties -- of FaceBook billionaire.
They blamed for gaming the system trying to get out of paying tens of millions in taxes while FaceBook goes public.
We recently learned that this man one of Facebook's co founders has renounced his American citizenship.
Lawmakers say he's a tax dodger who now lives in Singapore.
And the democratic senators Chuck Schumer of new York and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania.
Say the guys move could save him some 67 million dollars in US taxes.
The amount is obviously in dispute the FaceBook co-founder told the New York Times newspaper that he had no intention of dodging -- -- and adding and I quote.
I was born in Brazil I was an American citizen for about ten years I thought of myself as a global citizen.
Senator Schumer says he doesn't buy that.
Eduardo saffron wants to.
And we aren't going to let him get away with.
And the senators say they want to band entrepreneur or is like the FaceBook co-founder from getting back into the United States.
If they tried ditching the country for the tax breaks and lawmakers have proposed a new bill to make it happen.
The chief fox were correspondent Jonathan Hunt is in studio this hour on our lead story so what what would this bill do exactly.
Well it's cold the ex Patriot Act well in Mosul individual right that I would have been quite some but no humanitarian.
True.
Wow well -- and Obama this is probably exciting -- -- that kind of drama but it's called the ex Patriot Act.
-- under its rules if the IRS decided that that this FaceBook co-founder and lot of sovereign or indeed anybody like him is renouncing their citizenship.
For tax purposes then in future they would have to pay 30% capital gains tax on any investments they have in the US.
That person would also be banned from ever coming back.
Into the united Stipe did the United States -- for business purposes or visit to Disney land under these rules and the senator Chuck Schumer made this sand.
Very.
Personal -- the press conference today.
Listen mr.
-- says he's a global citizen.
But it just so happens the country -- -- chosen to resides Singapore.
Has no capital gains tax.
This tax avoidance scheme is outrageous.
Severin has turned his back on the country that welcomed him and kept him say.
Educated him and helped him become a billionaire.
Senator Bob Casey who was -- senator Chuck Schumer put it perhaps even more succinctly saying that -- this average is quote spitting in the IE of every American.
So how often does this sort of tax dodge happen.
Well we looked at some government figures show up on what they show is that so -- this year.
Some 460.
People overnight stay US citizenship compare that with 2011 the total -- was just over 1712010.
Just under 15102009.
Was 731.
Of the most depth the most recent figure was in 2008.
226.
But Walt those figures don't show us.
Is that justification.
In each case for that person renouncing their citizenship so bottom line is we competent figure on how many people do it as a tax college but you go to -- it's a pretty high -- -- -- think this makes sense Jonathan thanks let's take the legal panel now before prosecutor Fox's legal analyst Arthur right Dolly is here.
As as the criminal offense very Randy -- also what is the public relations consultant Frazier site tell he's the author of rethinking reputation.
-- PR trumps marketing and advertising in the new media world and what they've PR mess they have here.
On the poor kid wears your heart that call home.
Now you know it really is so transparent because he went on the PR offensive yesterday by being interviewed by the New York Times which appeared today.
And as you said he said I'm a citizen of the world citizen of the globe.
I mean come you know we're stupid but not that stupid.
The point is that tomorrow.
His capital gains would be.
In excess of three billion dollars that's why he did this the interesting thing to me -- is in the movie in the FaceBook movie.
He was the sympathetic figure and because he's the one that Mark Zuckerberg and Justin Timberlake through out of the company.
-- and so he's still he's transformed himself from sympathy entrusted to -- you can't trust JT he's transformed itself from a sympathetic figure.
Two way yet common tax cheat so he's got a real problem.
Legally speaking guys.
What -- can really go on here.
I think that's why is nothing that I think he's in with the -- -- that's why Schumer is.
On the offense and that's why they're at raves Schumer senator Schumer to -- and that is -- used to be my congressman.
-- -- -- -- -- Com -- also within from the form I did I you -- you watch that movie it's a great movie was good and we was a great movie it's a big movie and you do feel bad for the -- should I if I ever met this reminds me of the Secret Service agents they went down they use the women and when it came time to pay that it wanna pay -- into America uses it in time to -- he doesn't -- -- pay.