The investigators in Barcelona have alleged in a statement that the pop star ‘Shakira’ used an offshore company located in a tax haven to avoid paying a $7 million tax bill.
Spain Charges Shakira With Tax Evasion for Second Time
Spanish prosecutors have accused the pop star Shakira of failing to pay taxes on her 2018 income of 6.7 million euros ($7.1 million), officials said on Tuesday, the latest in a string of financial probes against the Colombian singer.
According to a statement from Barcelona’s prosecutors, Shakira is alleged to have used an offshore company in a tax haven to evade tax payments.
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She has been informed of the accusations in Miami, where she resides, as per the statement.
Shakira already faces a separate case in Barcelona, set for November 20, which relates to where she was living between 2012 and 2014. In that case, prosecutors accuse her of failing to pay 14.5 million euros ($15.4 million) in tax.
Barcelona prosecutors allege that the Grammy winner spent more than half of 2012-14 in Spain and therefore should have paid tax in the country, even though her official residence was in the Bahamas.
Spanish tax authorities opened the latest case against Shakira in July. The decision to file charges was made by the prosecution after analyzing the evidence acquired over the previous two months. The trial’s date has not been determined.
Shakira’s former public relations agency, which was in charge of her legal matters, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Last July, it said that the artist had “always fulfilled her tax obligations and owes no money to the Spanish Treasury.”
Shakira, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, has been linked to Spain since she began dating retired football player Gerard Piqué. The couple, who have two kids, cohabitated in Barcelona for 11 years until calling it quits last year.
Over the past ten years, the Spanish tax authorities have sought numerous prominent football players, including Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, for unpaid taxes. They have been found guilty of tax fraud but, because of provisions in Spanish law, have avoided serving jail time, allowing judges to exchange their sentences for fines.
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