Overview

• As of early August 2025, the former king has fully repaid more than €4 million borrowed from a group of businessmen to cover outstanding debts with the Spanish Tax Agency.
• The loans originally funded a voluntary regularization of €4.395 million in February 2021 for private travel expenses charged through the offshore Fundación Zagatka.
• He used income generated as a UAE fiscal resident—primarily from documentary rights sales and commercial intermediation—to reimburse the loans in full.
• Full repayment invokes Article 305.4 of the Spanish Penal Code, which considers tax obligations regularized when debts are fully acknowledged and paid, nullifying fictitious-loan claims.
• In June 2022, Juan Carlos settled a separate probe into undeclared gifts by paying under €500,000 in administrative sanctions and has maintained fiscal residency in the UAE to remain beyond Spanish tax reach.