Our good friends up north are constantly being bashed for one reason or another ... but now it's time to celebrate something Canadian - their low tax rates.

Okay, maybe not 'low' ... but if you are rich in America you may soon be envying their top-end taxes.

Let's compare:

CANADA

Canadians pay a flat 29% on any taxable income over $126,264.   They also pay provincial taxes, the highest of which is Nova Scotia's 17.5% on any income over $93,000.   So a rich guy in Halifax is paying an income tax rate of 46.5% on the top-end.   He also pays property taxes and about 15% in VAT on the goods he buys.   Of course, he also gets lots of vacation time, 'free' health care, cheap education and delicous poutine in Montreal.

U.S.A.

Our top-end federal income tax rate is going back to 39.6% from 35% when the Bush tax cuts expire Jan. 1, 2011.  Nancy Pelosi wants to add a 5.4% tax to those making more than $500,000/year (single) and $1,000,000/year (joint).    So if you live in a no-state income tax state such as Florida, your max will be 45%.   However, if you live in a high-tax state such as California, Massachusetts, New York or New Jersey, you are going to be paying well more than that fellow in Canada.

New Jersey's top-end tax rate is 10.75%.    Add the 39.6% Federal and the proposed Pelosi health care tax of 5.4%, and a wall streeter living in the Garden State will be paying an all-in top tax rate of 55.75%.

Of course, the progressiveness of the tax rate brings down that total, but the bloke is probably looking at an effective tax rate of 25%, not including property taxes.    But unlike our Canadian example, this guy also has to pay for health care premiums, sky-high property taxes and $30,000 a year for his daughter to go to college.   Not to mention skimpy vacation time and tolls on nearly every major highway.

Let's hope California, New York, New Jersey and others have a hefty supply of moving vans ... maybe not to Canada, but states such as Virginia and Tennessee may see a big influx.