Quote from reiser999:
Here is the expatriation tax law:
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/international/article/0,,id=97245,00.html
There will be an exit tax based on the estimated value of all your claimed assets (realized or unrealized). So even if you have not sold a capital asset you will be taxed on the capital gains regardless.
If you stay in the US for more than 30 days of any year during the ten year period following renouncing citizenship you will be taxed on your worldwide income for that whole year.
About $600,000 of gains will be excluded.
Quote from Cutten:
This is no problem for Americans wanting to expatriate themselves. Just go to a McDonalds, order a cup of hot coffee, then deliberately spill it on yourself. You will immediately be stampeded by a swarm of ambulance-chasing lawyers who will offer no win no fee representation, and a few months later you will collect $2-3 million in damages. This should offset most of the exit tax you have to pay when you leave.
Also, tax is not the main reason to leave the USA. The real reason is fat chicks.