Spain built a tax fraud case against Shakira that lasted eight years. They went all the way to court. Then they lost — and were ordered to pay her back.
Spain’s National High Court acquitted the Colombian pop star of tax fraud this week, ruling that the country’s treasury had improperly collected the money. The court ordered Spanish authorities to refund nearly $65 million to Shakira, including interest on the amount wrongfully taken from her.
The case hinged on a surprisingly simple question: how many days did Shakira spend in Spain in 2011? Under Spanish law, a person must spend at least 183 days in the country during a given year to be classified as a tax resident and therefore liable for personal income tax.
Spain’s tax agency argued she had spent those 183 days in the country. The court disagreed. After reviewing the evidence, judges ruled that Shakira had actually spent just 163 days in Spain during that financial year — 20 days short of the legal threshold required to establish residency.
That 20-day difference was enough to break the entire case apart. Because tax authorities could never prove she crossed that 183-day line, the court ruled the fines imposed on her were unlawful. The government’s legal argument, built over nearly a decade, collapsed on a calendar count.
The tax agency said it would appeal the decision to the Spanish Supreme Court and would not make any payment until a final ruling is reached. That means the $64 million has not yet changed hands, and the legal fight is not completely over.
Still, the ruling was a significant vindication for Shakira, who had maintained her innocence throughout the entire process. After the court’s decision, she released a lengthy public statement that left very little to interpretation.
“After more than eight years of enduring brutal public targeting, orchestrated campaigns to destroy my reputation, and sleepless nights that ultimately impacted my health and my family’s well-being, the National High Court has finally set the record straight,” she wrote. “There was never any fraud, and the Administration itself could never prove otherwise, simply because it wasn’t true.”
Shakira didn’t stop there. She called out what she described as a pattern of leaks, distortions, and public pressure tactics used against her throughout the legal process.
“Yet, for nearly a decade, I was treated as guilty,” she continued. “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.”
Her final words in the statement were pointed directly at the broader system, not just her own case.
“My greatest wish is that this ruling sets a precedent for the Treasury and serves the thousands of ordinary citizens who are abused and crushed every day by a system that presumes their guilt and forces them to prove their innocence at the cost of economic and emotional ruin. This victory is dedicated to them.”
The ruling is the latest chapter in a sprawling legal history between Shakira and Spanish tax authorities. This particular case focused on the 2011 fiscal year, but it was not the only one. In a separate matter involving tax years between 2012 and 2014, Shakira accepted a settlement in 2023, paying a €7.5 million fine rather than going to trial. She said at the time that she settled “with the best interest of my kids at heart.” Additionally, in 2024, a Spanish court dropped yet another investigation into her 2018 tax payments due to a lack of evidence.
The pattern across all three cases is hard to ignore. Spain repeatedly tried to build fraud cases against one of the world’s most recognizable entertainers, and in each instance, the legal ground beneath those cases proved unstable.
For Shakira, the court victory arrives at a moment when her career is reaching extraordinary heights. Just days ago, FIFA announced that she will perform alongside Madonna and BTS during the halftime show at the FIFA Men’s World Cup final this summer. It will be the first-ever halftime performance at a World Cup final, taking place at New York New Jersey Stadium on July 19.
Earlier this month, Shakira drew an estimated 2 million people to a free concert on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro. She was the third consecutive female artist to headline a free Copacabana show, following Madonna in 2024 and Lady Gaga in 2025.
The contrast is striking. While Spain spent eight years trying to prove she was a tax cheat, Shakira was selling out stadiums, drawing millions of fans to free concerts, and landing one of the most coveted performance slots in global sports entertainment. The court case never broke her momentum, and by the looks of this ruling, it never broke her, either.
Spain built the case. Spain lost the case. And now Spain may owe her $64 million.
