First I needed to deal with a tax issue. The Embas...

First I needed to deal with a tax issue. The Embassy website said that I could get the form I needed at the Internal Revenue office at the Embassy in London. It gave opening hours. When I arrived at the Embassy I was not even allowed to go into reception even though I presented my valid passport at the window. I was kept waiting on the street. Thank god it wasn't raining. I was told that the office was closed and to go away. I persisted and after about 15 minutes someone came out and spoke to me on the pavement in front of the Embassy. I pointed out that the website said that the Internal Revenue office was open and that I had arrived during the opening hours listed on the website. I was told that the Inland Revenue facility no longer existed at the Embassy and "that's how things are now". Then several days later I needed to get some important mortgage documents notarised. My title company in the US specified that they would only accept notarisation by the American Embassy. It turns out that there are no appointments available through the whole of 2016! It seems that the notary function is being closed as well. The British notary firm I spoke to wants "thousands of pounds" to do the work! All US citizens in London are now required to file tax returns in the US even if our earnings are so minimal that we owe no tax. Accountants fees for filing US taxes from London are in excess of $500.00 but we face significant penalties if we don't file. It would appear that the US government has no respect for its citizens living abroad. I feel held to ransom and ignored. This gives a whole new meaning to the term second class citizen.