Beyoncé responds to government claim she owes millions in back taxes

Louis Chilton
·2 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Beyoncé has responded to a claim by the US government that she owes more than $2m (£1.59m) in upaid back taxes.

The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter, 41, has reportedly filed a petition with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), requesting a trial in Los Angeles.

That’s according to legal documents accessed by People magazine.

The IRS recently issued Beyoncé, real name Beyoncé Knowles, with a notice of deficiency, alleging that she owed $2.69m (£2.1m) in unpaid taxes.

Broken down, this comprises $805,850 (£640,000) for 2018 and $1,442,747 (£1.1m) for 2019, as well as a further $449,719.40 (£357,000) in penalties incurred.

Beyoncé’s legal team is arguing that a minimum of $868,766 (£691,000) should be written off, as it was given instead as a tax-exempt charity donation.

In a statement, the singer’s lawyer Michael C Cohen said: “We are working with the IRS and anticipate that the matter will be resolved shortly.”

The Independent has contacted a representative of Beyoncé for further comment.

Earlier this year, Beyoncé became the most decorated artist in Grammys history, taking over the record frm late conductor Georg Solti.

The artist was nominated in nine different categories for the 2023 ceremony, including top prizes Artist of the Year, Song of the Year and Record of the Year.

Beyoncé pictured at the 2023 Grammys (Getty Images for The Recording A)
Beyoncé pictured at the 2023 Grammys (Getty Images for The Recording A)

Among her wins this year were for Best R&B song (for “Cuff It”), Best Dance/Electronic Recording (for “Break My Soul”), Best Traditional R&B Performance (“Plastic Off the Sofa”) and Best Dance/Electronic Music Album.

The ceremony took her total up to 32, surpasing Solti’s record of 31.

Accepting that last award, she told attendees: “I’m trying not to be too emotional. I’m trying to just receive this night.

”I want to thank God for protecting me... I’d like to thank my uncle Johnny who is not here but he is here in spirit.

“I’d like to thank my parents, my father, my mother, for loving me, for pushing me. I’d like to thank my beautiful husband, my beautiful children who are watching at home.”

She added: “I’d like to thank the queer community – you invented the genre.”