Denise Rich, the Grammy Award-nominated songwriter who was once married to infamous tax evader Marc Rich, has officially become a citizen of Austria, according to FOX News. Rich’s name appeared on a quarterly list of individuals who have renounced their United States citizenship, a fact which was confirmed by the songstress’ representative.
“In order to be closer to her longtime life partner, as well as her family and loved ones, she made the decision to become an Austrian citizen. That was in November 2011,” Judy Smith explained to the Wall Street Journal.
Although Rich was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, she has ties to Austria through her deceased father. The move, according to the folks speculating endless at FOX News, will ultimately save the songwriter several millions of dollars in taxes. What’s more, Austria provides tax breaks to citizens who spend half of the year abroad, which, of course, sweetens the deal considerably. In short, she’s going to be saving money left and right.
However, Rich’s move to Austria may cost her a bit on the way out the door. A 2008 law stipulates that those who intend to renounce their U.S. citizenship must pay an “exit tax” that would take a chunk of “unrealized gain in the value of assets over $600,000”. Not surprisingly, Rich’s representative did not comment on such matters.
In 1984, Denise Rich wrote the song “Frankie” for the group Sister Sledge, a ditty she followed up with tunes for Phyllis Hyman, Natalie Cole, Celine Dion, Jessica Simpson, Marc Anthony, Patti LaBelle, Chaka Khan and Diana Ross. The most recent addition to her musical canon was the 1999 Aretha Franklin/Mary J. Blige duet “Don’t Waste Your Time”.
Image provided courtesy of Haute Living
