Shakira, a Colombian pop diva, is charged by Spanish prosecutors with committing six instances of tax fraud. The prosecution has requested a prison term of more than eight years and a fine of more than €23 million for Shakira. It is claimed that Shakira retained tax residency in the Bahamas until at least 2015, according to prosecutors Gerard Pique’s connection with her began in 2011 when she moved to Spain. According to documents seen by Reuters, a Spanish prosecutor intends to ask a judge to sentence Shakira to up to eight years in prison and a fine of $23 million for tax fraud.
What Is The Tax Case Against Shakira?
From 2012 to 2014, the Grammy-winning singer is accused of failing to pay over $15 million in taxes. She claims to have previously paid the Spanish tax agency $17.5 million to resolve her debt. Yet in July of last year, a court found enough “proof of wrongdoing” to put the Dancing With Myself star and executive producer on trial.
Singer Shakira, who shot to popularity after the release of her 2001 single “Wherever, Whenever,” has been accused of lying about where she lives in order to avoid paying taxes. Three million euros (£2.5 million) has already been paid to the Spanish tax authorities. Earlier this year, Shakira and Barcelona footballer Pique called it quits.
A month after his ex-girlfriend claimed he had cheated on her, a dejected Pique was caught on camera seemingly listening to Shakira in his car. They initially met in 2010 while filming the music video for her song “Waka Waka” for the World Cup. About a year later, right after Spain’s World Cup victory in South Africa, they began dating.
Shakira wants to go to Miami with their two children, so the ex-couple has spent the last few weeks negotiating their children’s futures. A full tax resident in Spain only became a full tax resident in 2015, when the Bahamas became Shakira’s previous location of residence. Any money earned outside of Spain must be reported and taxed in Spain by all people who are legally residing in Spain.
In addition, anyone who spends more than 183 days in Spain in a calendar year is considered a Spanish resident and subject to Spanish taxation. For more than a year, tax authorities tracked Shakira’s every move, visiting her favorite Barcelona hair salons and scouring her social media accounts in an effort to prove she spent the majority of the three years under investigation in the country.
A total of 242 days in Spain were attributed to her during 2012, and 212 days in 2013 were attributed to her during 2014. The singer, who has racked up sales of more than 80 million albums, insists she is innocent.
Sun Online spoke to a spokeswoman for Shakira, who said: “When it comes to her tax affairs, Shakira has always cooperated and complied with the law, always following the advice of PriceWaterhouse Coopers, a well regarded and worldwide recognized tax firm.
“Her rights have been violated yet again by the Spanish Tax Office, which has lost one out of every two cases against its taxpayers. By the end of the trial, Shakira feels convinced that her innocence will be confirmed.
Shakira’s Defence
According to Shakira’s legal team, the singer “never lived in Spain long enough” between 2012 and 2014 to trigger tax regulations, while the prosecution relied on “indirect” evidence to support its assertions about Shakira’s presence in Spain.
When asked about the controversy, Shakira stated that she is “fully willing to resolve any differences” with the IRS if those differences are found to be valid. She also claimed that PricewaterhouseCoopers, a London-based tax law and financial services consulting firm, advised her financially during the time in question. According to El Pas, the firm is not participating in the legal case.
History & Childhood Of Shakira
Shakira was born on February 2, 1977, in Barranquilla, Colombia. Her parents only had one child. When she was seven, her father gave her a typewriter, and she began writing poetry on it. She’d been teased since she was a kid because she sang with such a distinctive vibrato.
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She had a natural talent for dance, particularly belly dancing, in addition to creating poems, songs, and singing. She used to be active in community theater and activities. She was introduced to a Sony Colombia official one day, and he was thrilled with her audition and signed her to record three albums for the company.
