Colombian singer Shakira has won an important legal victory against the Spanish tax agency after the Audiencia Nacional (National Court) annulled penalties related to the 2011 tax year.
The ruling concludes that the Treasury failed to prove that the artist resided in Spain for more than 183 days during that year, a key requirement for her to be considered a tax resident in the country.
According to the decision, the court considers it proven that the performer remained outside Spain for much of 2011 due to international professional commitments, including an extensive world tour. The verdict thus rejects the claim maintained for years by the tax authorities, which alleged that the artist’s centre of life and economic interests was already established in Spain.
Crucially, the move means that the tax authorities will have to return more than 60 million euros in settlements, penalties and accumulated interest.
The magistrates said that the economic claims imposed lacked a legal basis as the singer’s tax residence during the period under investigation had not been accredited.
Shakira denounces a decade of media and judicial pressure
In a statement released by her team, the singer said: “There was never any fraud, and the administration itself was never able to prove the contrary, simply because it was not true. Yet, for almost a decade, I have been treated as guilty, every step of the process has been leaked, distorted and amplified, and my name and my public persona have been used to send a threatening message to other taxpayers”.
The case refers exclusively to the 2011 tax year and does not directly affect the agreement reached by the artist in 2023 to close another tax fraud proceeding related to the years 2012, 2013 and 2014.
In that case, Shakira accepted a million-dollar fine and avoided imprisonment after reaching an agreement with the prosecution.
The decision can still be appealed before the Supreme Court.