Spain’s High Court has cleared Colombian pop star Shakira of tax fraud and annulled a €55 million ($64 million) penalty imposed by Spanish tax authorities in 2021, according to a court document.
Following an appeal by the “Hips Don’t Lie” singer, the court also ordered the Treasury to refund her more than €60 million ($70 million), including interest, her legal team said.
The judges found that authorities had failed to demonstrate that Shakira spent more than 183 days in Spain in 2011, the threshold required under Spanish law for someone to qualify as a tax resident. The ruling does not apply to subsequent tax years.
Tax officials had previously argued that she was effectively based in Spain because of her relationship with former FC Barcelona footballer Gerard Piqué and because her professional activities were centred in the country.
However, the High Court said the penalties were unlawful because they relied on an unproven assumption that she was a tax resident in Spain during the 2011 fiscal year.
The Spanish tax agency said it intends to appeal to the Supreme Court, meaning no payment will be made until a final decision is reached.
Shakira’s lawyer, José Luis Prada, welcomed the judgment, describing it as the end of an “eight-year ordeal” and criticising what he called a lack of rigour in administrative practice.
Shakira said the ruling could set an example for “thousands of ordinary citizens who are abused and crushed every day by a system that presumes them guilty and forces them to prove their innocence while facing financial and emotional ruin”, according to the same statement.
Separately, in November 2023, Shakira reached a deal with prosecutors to avoid trial in Barcelona over allegations that she failed to pay €14.5 million in Spanish income tax between 2012 and 2014.
Under the agreement, she admitted the charges and paid a fine of more than €7.3 million, roughly half of the alleged debt.
Iran says the Strait of Hormuz remains under its control, rejecting U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim of “total control” over t...
One person has been killed and six others injured after an explosion at a petroleum storage facility at the Port of Rotterdam, prompting an investi...
The suspension of two major grain terminals in Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiysk could increase pressure on Kazakhstan’s agricult...
Disruption in the Strait of Hormuz has increased the strategic importance of Bab al-Mandab, raising fears that instability in both waterways could trigger a wider global energy and trade crisis.
Flights at Catania airport in Sicily will remain suspended until early Friday as ash from Mount Etna continues to disrupt air travel, following hundreds of cancellations and diversions over the past week.
Iran says the Strait of Hormuz remains under its control, rejecting U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim of “total control” over the strategic waterway and insisting it will not reopen until Washington fulfils its commitments under an interim deal.
Iran and the United States remain at loggerheads over efforts to agree a permanent end to the war in the Gulf, according to a senior Iranian source who said there had been no progress in talks to revive the interim deal agreed in June and define a timeframe to implement it.
Russia has accused Ukraine of threatening global grain supplies after recent strikes on Black Sea agricultural infrastructure, while Moscow carried out a new overnight attack on Ukraine’s major Danube port of Izmail.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has changed Eurovision Song Contest rules to allow a winning country to be blocked from hosting if security risks, armed conflict or geopolitical tensions make it unsafe to stage the event.
Each summer, Gabala becomes a gathering point for artists, musicians and audiences from across Azerbaijan and beyond.
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has surpassed $1.1 billion at the global box office, becoming the highest-grossing film of the director’s career.
Several Taylor Swift songs have disappeared from social media videos posted by U.S. President Donald Trump's campaign and the White House, after the best-selling pop star's music featured in two separate clips over the past week.
Ariana Grande says she will step back from public-facing work after her Eternal Sunshine Tour ends next month, marking a temporary pause in one of pop culture's most visible and closely scrutinised careers.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment