The court also ordered the Spanish Treasury to reimburse the artist more than 60 million euros (about $70 million), including interest, according to her legal team, following an appeal against earlier rulings that had imposed a 55 million euro fine.
At the center of the dispute was whether Shakira met the legal threshold for tax residency in Spain in 2011, which requires spending more than 183 days in the country within a year.
The court concluded that authorities failed to establish that condition.
“The appellant's tax residence was in Spain for the 2011 fiscal year, a fact which has not been proven”.
That finding effectively invalidated the earlier assessment that she was liable for Spanish taxes that year.
Dispute Over Residency and Relationship Ties
Spanish tax authorities had argued that Shakira’s personal life and professional ties placed her in Spain during that period, citing her relationship with former Gerard Piqué and her growing presence in the country through her connection to FC Barcelona, where Piqué played at the time.
However, the court ruled that those associations were not sufficient proof of tax residency under Spanish law, which relies heavily on physical presence.
Refund Order and Legal Next Steps
Beyond overturning the fine, the court ordered the tax authorities to return the full amount previously collected or imposed, including accrued interest—bringing the total reimbursement to over 60 million euros.
Spain’s tax agency has indicated it intends to appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court, meaning no payment will be made until the final decision is reached.
The case now moves into its final legal phase, with potential implications for how residency disputes are assessed in Spain’s tax system.
Legal Team and Public Reaction
Shakira’s lawyer, José Luis Prada, described the ruling as the end of a prolonged dispute, saying it followed what he called “an eight-year ordeal”.
In a statement, Shakira herself framed the case more broadly, suggesting it reflects systemic issues in how tax investigations are handled.
She said she hoped the ruling would set a precedent for “thousands of ordinary citizens who are abused and crushed every day by a system that presumes them guilty and forces them to prove their innocence while facing financial and emotional ruin”.
Background: A Separate Settlement
This case is distinct from an earlier tax matter resolved in 2023, when Shakira reached a settlement with Spanish prosecutors over allegations that she failed to pay 14.5 million euros in income tax between 2012 and 2014.
As part of that agreement, she avoided a full trial in Barcelona and accepted a penalty of more than 7.3 million euros—roughly half the amount originally claimed.