News Alert: Faith Wins Stands with Missionaries and Families
The U.S. Senate is considering including a 3.5 percent tax on international money transfers as part of the reconciliation process. While this provision is intended to deter undocumented immigrants from entering the United States by reducing the amount of money they can send back to their home countries, this provision, known as the remittance tax, may also unintentionally harm missionaries around the world who are dedicating their lives in service to God.
If Congress passes the remittance tax, it would act as a levy on top of income taxes, effectively a double tax on money that everyday Americans send to loved ones abroad. Individuals who choose to spread the Gospel internationally, American troops stationed overseas, other legal residents, and all of their families must not face unfair, excessive financial burdens because of this choice. We must support them and not allow them to get caught in the crossfire of a separate policy fight.
The only way that American taxpayers and nationals would be able to avoid this tax hit (there is no way for non-Americans to avoid the tax) would be to go through a citizen verification requirement, paving the way for increased government surveillance. American citizens and nationals should not be subject to any sort of government-mandated registry or database just to send money to loved ones or others who happen to be abroad, nor should the government involve itself in the efforts of Americans to fund ministry efforts abroad.
We are called to love our neighbors, not put their personal financial matters under a microscope. The remittance tax is a harmful, burdensome policy that does not serve everyday Americans. The Senate must protect our military, missionaries, and families who we hold so dear and reject its inclusion in the Reconciliation bill.
