Shakira unloads on Spanish government after court tosses tax fraud case, awards her $64 million

The court ordered the Spanish government to return more than $64 million in wrongly imposed fines. The ruling relates to a dispute over the 2011 tax year in which Spanish authorities failed to prove that the singer was a resident of Spain, the Madrid-based court said in its decision. To be considered a taxable resident of Spain, Shakira would have had to spend more than 183 days in the country. Spanish authorities were only able to prove that Shakira lived in Spain that year for a total of 163 days, the court said.

The Treasury was ordered to reimburse the "Whenever, Wherever" singer the tax paid plus interest.

"Yet, for nearly a decade, I was treated as guilty. Every step of the process was leaked, distorted, and amplified, using my name and public image to send a threatening message to the rest of the taxpayers.

But the High Court ruled that the relationship could not be legally equated to a marital one, nor was it proven that "the main center or base" of Shakira's activities or economic interests in 2011 were directly or indirectly located in Spain.

The decision follows years of tax troubles in Spain for the Colombian superstar. Shakira previously settled a separate tax fraud case with the government back in 2023. On the first day of trial, Shakira acknowledged she had failed to pay about $15.8 million in taxes between 2012 and 2014.

She was hit with an $8 million fine in addition to the previously unpaid taxes and interest.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.