Neymar
Neymar Reuters

Barcelona may face charges after the Spanish High Court lodged an accusation against the Catalan club regarding possible tax fraud against the revenue authorities in the summer signing of Neymar.

The Brazilian star joined Barcelona last summer, with the Spanish club initially saying they paid €57.1m for his services. However, after being investigated by a court for possible misappropriation of funds following complaints from a Barcelona member they admitted that the real price of the deal was €87m.

Although Barcelona President Sandro Rosell resigned from his post due to the fallout, reports in Spain claim that public prosecutors have continued their investigation and claim that the transaction was carried out through the issuing of false invoices, leading tax authorities to suspect that the transfer fee presented by the club does not correspond to the actual fee paid.

According to Spain's Public Prosecutor, Barcelona may have defrauded the tax office out of €9,100,800 as part of the €10m they paid in advance to secure Neymar's services in 2011, two years before moving to the Nou Camp.

Furthermore, High Court judge José Perals claims Barcelona should have paid 24.7% of the €37.1m transfer fee – the income tax rate for non-Spanish residents.

At the same time, the judge suggests that Barcelona draw up to nine contracts associated with parties related to the player and his representative, Neymar da Silva Santos, apart from the official contract to sign the player.

Spanish newspaper El Mundo reported last month that the cost of the Brazilian's transfer was up to €60m higher than the original €57m figure given by Barcelona, considering that the payment made to Neymar's father was a hidden payment to increase the player's salary in order to avoid tax obligations.