Singer Shakira must appear in court in Spain for tax fraud
At the end of July, the Spanish Public Prosecutor’s Office announced that it would demand a prison sentence of more than eight years and a fine of nearly 24 million euros against the singer for tax evasion. She would not have paid her income tax of 14.5 million euros for the 2012-2014 years.
Shakira, 45, known for the song “Hips don’t lie,” Waka Waka and “Luca” claim she is innocent and refused to accept an amicable settlement at the end of July. She said she would prefer a trial.
tax haven
According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, Shakira has lived in Spain since 2011, when it became known that she had an affair with Barcelona footballer Gerald Pique, but she kept her tax residence in the Bahamas until 2015. These islands are known as tax havens. According to prosecutors, she would not have been there for one day in the 2012-2014 tax years.
The couple, who have two children, announced their divorce in June of this year.
$17.2 million paid
The singer’s defense says that until 2014 her income came mainly from her international tours or participation in “The Voice” in the US and that she did not live in Spain for more than six months a year, however it is necessary to be considered a tax resident in Spain.
The star also argued that she has already paid 17.2 million euros to the Spanish tax authorities and therefore does not owe anything more.
pandora leaves
Shakira’s name is also mentioned in the Pandora Papers, an extensive study published at the end of 2021 by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and involving Knack, de Tejd and Le Soir in Belgium. In the investigation, hundreds of figures were accused of hiding assets in offshore companies, mainly for the purpose of tax evasion.
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