Shakira has been acquitted of tax fraud and will receive more than £50m from the Spanish government after a legal battle lasting nearly five years.
The Madrid-based Audiencia Nacional, Spain’s high court, said tax authorities had failed to prove that the Colombian singer, 49, had been in the country for sufficient time in 2011 to be classified as a tax resident and were ordered to pay her €55m (£48m) plus €5m (£4.35m) in interest.
Spanish law dictates that an individual must spend more than 183 days in Spain to be liable for tax.
The country’s tax agency was only able to prove that Shakira – who was in a relationship with Gerard Piqué, a Barcelona football player – lived in Spain in 2011 for a total of 163 days, the court said.
“Tax authorities had therefore failed to prove that the singer had the centre of her economic interests in Spain,” according to the ruling released on Monday.
The singer welcomed the decision that had “finally set the record straight” after years of “brutal public exposure, orchestrated campaigns to destroy my reputation, and sleepless nights that ultimately affected my health and my family’s wellbeing”. (The Telegraph)