[seanmcdirmid]

Only if you are resident in Canada. A lot of countries do that. The USA will tax you even if you aren't resident as long as you have at least a green card or other immigrant visa.

How many people are collecting income from a full time job while living in Canada anyways? Doesn't foreign income (vs. say capital gains) generally imply non residency?

[eloff]

Not if you have an internet business of some kind, or work remotely for a foreign company. But if you do that, you're a schmuck to live in a country with a high tax rate. You can double your income, which means your savings rate probably goes up 600% or more, just by moving to a country that does not tax foreign income. How much faster can you pay off your mortgage under those conditions? How much faster can you retire?

It's not quite as magical as it seems though. If you retire in your 40s because of doing that, you'll need a lot more savings than you would at 65.

[charlesdm]

Directors of Canadian companies who are living abroad is probably one example.

Also, people who, say, commute from CA to the US on a daily basis will generally be exempt from Canadian taxes because the work is performed in the US (just an example, I have no idea whether you can commute from CA -> US on a daily basis)

[seanmcdirmid]

Well, I was "taxed" on my Chinese income, but never paid a dime. Foreign tax credits and foreign income exclusions mean most of us pay nothing (well, we pay Chinese taxes, just not US taxes).