By Stephen Simon
A court in Spain has ordered the country’s tax agency to return more than €55 million to Colombian music star Shakira after ruling that she was wrongly taxed over her 2011 earnings.
According to the court’s decision, tax authorities failed to prove that the singer stayed in Spain for more than 183 days in 2011, which is the minimum period required for someone to be considered a tax resident in the country.
The court said evidence showed that Shakira spent only 163 days in Spain during that year. Judges also ruled that authorities could not establish that her main economic activities were based in the country at the time.
As part of the judgment, Spain’s tax agency was directed to refund all money collected from the singer, including penalties, tax adjustments, and accumulated interest. The repayment is reported to be above €55 million, covering income taxes, fines, and other charges previously imposed on her.
Reacting to the ruling, Shakira expressed relief over the outcome and criticised how the case had been handled publicly over the years.
She said the court had “finally set the record straight” after years of “brutal public exposure, orchestrated campaigns to destroy my reputation, and sleepless nights that ultimately affected my health and my family’s wellbeing”.
“Every step of the process was leaked, distorted, and amplified, using my name and public image to send a threatening message to other taxpayers. Today, that narrative falls apart,” she added.
The ruling comes as the 49-year-old singer prepares to conclude her successful “Women Don’t Cry Anymore” world tour with a concert residency scheduled to begin in Madrid later this year.
Shakira previously lived in Barcelona with former partner, Gerard Piqué and their two sons before the couple separated in 2022. After the breakup, she relocated to Miami with the children.
The singer has consistently maintained that she only officially became a resident in Spain at the end of 2014 and later transferred her tax residency from the Bahamas in 2015.
The legal battle is one of several disputes between the singer and Spanish tax authorities. In another case linked to tax issues between 2012 and 2014, prosecutors accused her of failing to pay taxes on earnings worth millions of euros.
In 2023, she reached an agreement with prosecutors to settle that matter and avoid a trial by accepting the charges and paying a fine worth nearly €7.8 million.
Spanish investigators reportedly reviewed her social media posts and questioned several people, including neighbours and her hairstylist, while trying to prove she spent enough time in Spain to qualify as a tax resident.
Shakira earlier compared the investigation to an “Inquisition trial,” claiming authorities were more interested in publicly humiliating her than listening to her defence.
Spain has previously pursued other famous football figures, including Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, over separate tax-related offences.
