Last year, Shakira gave a rather legendary Elle interview. She spoke at length about just how much she did to make her relationship with Gerard Pique work, and she also spoke at length about how the Spanish tax authorities are trying to jam her up. For years, Spanish authorities have claimed that Shakira didn’t pay enough taxes given her part-time residence in Barcelona. Shakira has long employed PricewaterhouseCoopers, the internationally renowned tax specialists and accountants. She has all of her literal receipts, she knows exactly how many days she spent in Spain, she knows how much she’s paid and what she owes. She also no longer lives in Spain – she moved to Miami shortly after Pique cheated on her in their home. Well, the Spanish authorities are still desperate to punish Shakira and get as much money from her as possible. I said before that the Spanish tax agencies are coming across like scammers, and I still feel that way.
Prosecutors in Spain have once again charged Shakira with tax fraud — this time linked to taxes filed on her 2018 income. In a statement obtained by the Associated Press, Barcelona prosecutors accused the Columbian singer, 46, of failing to pay about $7.1 million (6.7 million euros) in taxes in 2018. They alleged that she avoided paying the taxes by using an offshore company located in a tax haven.
They also noted that Shakira was informed of the charges in her current home city of Miami, according to the AP, who first reported the news. Shakira did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
The new charges come after a Spanish court said in July that it started an investigation linked to alleged fraud on the singer’s personal income tax and wealth tax in 2018. The court said it had no information on how much money was in question at the time, according to the AP.
The court, located in Esplugues de Llobregat near Barcelona, opened a second case as a result of a complaint made by the Barcelona Economic Crimes Prosecutor regarding Shakira allegedly defrauding the tax agency, per a translation from Spanish media outlet El Pais. Another local outlet, El Periodico, reported that the prosecutor’s office filed a complaint for two alleged tax crimes.
A representative for Shakira told PEOPLE in a statement at the time that she “defends having always acted in accordance with the law and under the advice of the best tax experts. She is now focused on her life as an artist in Miami and is confident that there will be a favorable resolution of her tax issues.”
[From People]
Shakira refused to “settle” one of the previous charges because, as she has said, she has confidence in her own records and her PwC accountants. I’ve seen comments on here and other places about how Shakira has tax shelters and residences in tax havens… and? It’s not illegal to have a residence in a tax haven. It’s not illegal to set up tax shelters. Tax loopholes exist all around the world. Of course Shakira has protected herself and protected her assets. I think a lot of people have big problems when it’s a successful Colombian woman protecting her assets and refusing to roll over for a government agency in the middle of a smear campaign.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
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