Shakira has spoken openly about her tax scandal in Spain. Despite settling the case by paying a fine of US$15 million, Shakira insists that she does not feel guilty. Her decision to pay the fine was driven by her desire to protect her two children, Milan (11) and Sasha (9), not because she admitted to having committed an offense.
"I need them to know that the decision I made was to protect them (the children), to be by their side and to move on with my life. Not out of fear or guilt," she stressed. In an open letter published in the newspaper El Mundo, Shakira accused Spanish authorities of trying to make her a scapegoat in the case, saying the move was made to restore their public image.
"Things cannot be solved by burning one public figure every year as if it were an Inquisition trial, to regain lost prestige," Shakira wrote in her letter. Shakira was first accused of tax evasion in 2018. Spanish authorities claimed that the "Hips Don't Lie" singer lived in Spain between 2012 and 2014, which would have cost her nearly $16 million in income taxes.
However, Shakira denied the allegations, saying that she never lived in Spain during that period, and therefore did not qualify as a taxpayer in the country. Shakira also noted that 2023 was one of the toughest years of her life.
In addition to facing a trial related to her tax case, she was also in the media spotlight after her split from her ex-partner, Gerard Piqué. "But what is most frustrating is that a state institution seems more interested in 'burning' me in public than listening to my reasons," Shakira wrote.
She insists that he has always complied with his tax obligations, both in Spain and abroad, including an IRS investigation in the United States that found no problems with his tax returns. However, Spanish authorities continue to create narratives to create tax obligations where none exist.
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