International pop star Shakira settled a multimillion-euro tax evasion case with Spanish prosecutors on the opening day of her tax fraud trial in Barcelona.
On November 20 the singer, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak, agreed to a last-minute deal with the public prosecutor's office. In addition to €14.5 million in unpaid taxes plus interest, Shakira will pay a €7.3 million fine. She will also make a €432,000 payment to waive a suspended three-year prison sentence.
The plea deal prevents what was expected to be a lengthy trial, which would have included more than 100 witnesses. If she had been found guilty, Shakira could have faced eight years in prison and a €23.7 million fine.
Shakira was first indicted for tax fraud charges in 2018. Prosecutors alleged that she claimed to be a resident of the Bahamas from 2012 through 2014 when in fact she was a Spanish resident. Shakira’s lawyers rejected a plea deal in 2022.
The singer said in a statement provided by her public relations firm that while she wanted to continue to fight, she decided to put her family and career first.
“I have made the decision to finally resolve this matter with the best interest of my kids at heart who do not want to see their mom sacrifice her personal well-being in this fight,” Shakira said. “I need to move past the stress and emotional toll of the last several years and focus on the things I love, my kids and all the opportunities to come in my career.”
Shakira paid over €20 million in 2018 to settle a dispute regarding her 2011 tax liability that was beyond the statute of limitations for criminal tax disputes but was pursued by the Spanish tax authority through administrative means.
However, the settlement does not mark the end of Shakira's tax woes. In July a judge accepted the recommendation from the prosecutor's office to expand its investigation into Shakira’s tax affairs beyond the three years originally at issue. Prosecutors have claimed she underpaid almost €6.1 million in tax on income earned in 2018.
Spain has investigated several high-profile individuals for tax evasion. In 2017 the Supreme Court upheld a 21-month prison sentence given to Lionel Messi for underreporting income during his time with FC Barcelona. In 2018 Cristiano Ronaldo agreed to plead guilty to four charges of tax evasion and agreed to pay €18.8 million related to the alleged underreporting of income between 2011 and 2014 from his image rights, which were sold to a company in the British Virgin Islands.