In 1968 John Templeton renounced his U.S. citizenship in favor of U.K. Citizenship, with residence in the Bahamas.
Already having made his billions, this change exempted him from further U.S. taxes. Further, his residence outside of England exempts him from most U.K. taxes, although it did not preclude him from given a knighthood by the Queen.
Templeton was not the only American to do this, but his high profile and great wealth annoyed Congress into passing a law which makes escaping taxation on U.S. derived wealth less easy.
§ …… If the IRS proves you have renounced your U.S. citizenship for tax reasons, you owe U.S. taxes for another ten years after you are no longer a U.S. citizen.
§ …… There may be a presumptive exclusion for those with assets under $500k, but I'm not aware of it.
Further, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (formerly the INS) acts like total bastards if you wish to come back to the U.S. to visit.
Other well known people who have renounced their U.S. citizenship include:
Mark Harris Getty and Christopher Ronald Getty, grandsons of John Paul Getty;
Kenneth Dart, president of Dart containers Corp.;
Michael Dingman, chairman of Abex;
J. Mark Mobius, money manager;
John Dorrance III, heir to the Campbell Soup fortune;
Joseph Bogdanovich, vice chairman of H.R. Heinz Co.
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