Shakira has scored a major legal victory in Spain after the country’s High Court cleared her of tax fraud allegations tied to her 2011 income. The ruling overturned a massive €55 million fine that had been imposed by Spanish tax authorities in 2021. According to her representatives, the government now owes the singer more than €60 million back after the court found authorities failed to prove she lived in Spain long enough during 2011 to qualify as a tax resident. Spanish officials had argued that Shakira’s relationship with former soccer star Gerard Piqué tied her closely enough to Spain for tax purposes. But the court ruled there wasn’t enough evidence showing she spent the required 183 days in the country that year. Shakira blasted the case in a lengthy statement, saying she endured nearly a decade of reputational damage, public scrutiny and emotional stress while being treated as guilty before authorities could actually prove anything. She said she hopes the decision becomes a precedent protecting ordinary taxpayers from what she described as aggressive government tactics. Her legal team called the entire ordeal an “eight-year nightmare” and praised the court for finally shutting it down.