Despite Pop Star Shakira’s Tax Avoidance Accusations, Max Verstappen & Co. Refuse to Flinch: “$18.5 Million in Assets & a Profit of $4.3k…”

F1 drivers are notorious for living and establishing companies in tax-haven countries. Despite Monaco being one of the costliest places to live on earth, most F1 drivers choose to live there. While Max Verstappen is one of those, he established his company, Mavic in Luxembourg. The small European country is a hub for celebrities registering their Intellectual Properties Rights. However, despite a crackdown on Shakira in Spain, Verstappen remains firm in his decision to stay.

Almost three months after her split with soccer sensation Gerard Pique, the Spanish authorities hit Shakira with a tax fraud allegation. The period that she describes as the darkest phase of her life is the reason why she moved the rights to her $34.5 million brand in Luxembourg. Max’s manager, Raymond Vermeulen, however, maintains that it is not because of tax evasion that they will continue in Luxembourg.

Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf reported, “As of July 1, 2021, the rules for such companies have been tightened considerably. Only those who produce something in Luxembourg are still eligible for tax benefits.” [Translated using Google]

Reporting about Verstappen’s company, they wrote, “With its two employees, €17 million [$18.5 million approx.] in assets and a profit of €400,000 [$43000 approx.], Mavic remains below the limit above which companies must publish their tax payments. Vermeulen also does not want to share that figure.”

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In September last year, a judge in Spain ruled that the Colombian pop star will stand trial for a $13.9 million tax fraud she allegedly committed while living in the country between 2012 and 2014. The ruling came in after Shakira and the Spanish authorities could not come to an agreement.

How Shakira responded to the tax evasion allegations

Before the judge’s ruling, Shakira alleged that the prosecutor’s office “resorted to wrongful means to apply pressure” something she said they did with thousands of tax-paying people every day to earn profit.

Speaking with Elle in September, she said, “I have to fight for what I believe; because these are false accusations.”

On Spanish authorities’ allegation that she lived in the country for 183 days during those years, Shakira responded, “First of all, I didn’t spend 183 days per year at that time at all. I was busy fulfilling my professional commitments around the world.”

“Second, I’ve paid everything they claimed I owed, even before they filed a lawsuit. So as of today, I owe zero to them. And finally, I was advised by one of the four biggest tax specialist firms in the world, PricewaterhouseCoopers, so I was confident that I was doing things correctly and transparently from day one.”

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Ever since the split with Pique, the three-time Grammy winner is going through turbulent times. It will be interesting to see how the tax case turns out.