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No prison for Shakira - 11th Dec 2023

International pop singer Shakira isn't going to a Spanish prison. Her lawyers have just agreed to pay 22 million euros to the Spanish government.

For the government, the situation was clear. They said the Colombian singer needed to pay tax for a 3 year period, between 2012 and 2014. Shakira was then living with her partner, the Barcelona footballer Gerard Piqué, the father of their two sons.

Lawyers said Barcelona was her first home at the time, so she owed 14.5 million euros in tax. Shakira's lawyers disagreed and said her first home was in the Bahamas.

Now, the celebrity's living in Miami, in the USA, with her two sons. It's been a long law case, which lasted years. At first, she wanted to fight because she felt the Spanish government was wrong. But the stress was too much. In the end, the 46-year old decided to put her family first.

Her lawyers agreed she would pay 14.5 million euros, plus some extra, to avoid going to prison.

Footballers Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have signed similar agreements over tax. The message from the Spanish government is clear. It's telling rich foreigners that if they want to stay, they need to pay.