For Canadians retiring on CPP etc. - what's the 411?

Let's assume you are thinking of making the Panama move and you have little besides your CPP, OAS and whatever other Gov Can to retire on - what's the tax and document drill?

Tax: if you are below the income level that would attract income tax in Canada, it doesn't matter whether you go "non-res" or not; you can take your pension into a Cdn account and withdraw by debit as needed. No withholding, and you file as a Cdn every year, likely little or no tax payable after personal deductions.

You can go "non res" and the gov will withhold 25% but you file the following spring and likely get a full rebate. You can then file a form annually that requests that they stop deducting the withholding tax, and you need to file this every year.

So either way you pay no Cdn tax.

I have just received my fully authenticated Police Clearance and "Entitlement Letter" from Service Canada, stamped by Canada gov and by Panama Embassy, ready to submit for even more stamping in Panama when I go there in January.  If anyone needs to know where to get these things done, post and I'll reply. It took less than 3 weeks but I am within an hour of Ottawa so that helps.