Shakira and Gerard Pique have appeared before a court in Barcelona to discuss the visiting arrangements for their sons, Milan and Sasha, four years after their separation.
The former couple went before the court after several days of negotiations failed to produce a new agreement. Legal proceedings have now concluded and the case is awaiting a ruling, according to Marca.
The latest dispute centres on the children’s travel between Miami and Barcelona. Milan and Sasha have lived with their mother in Miami since 2023, while Pique is based in Barcelona.
Shakira’s proposed change
Representatives of Shakira say the singer wants to amend one part of the custody agreement to prevent the boys from making transatlantic journeys during short school breaks.
They insist the proposal is not intended to reduce the time Milan and Sasha spend with their father. Instead, Shakira wants the travel burden to be shared between both parents rather than placed entirely on the children.
Under her proposal, Pique would travel to Miami during shorter breaks to spend time with his sons there. That would avoid long-distance flights for relatively brief visits and reduce the disruption to their sleep.
Her representatives believe the change would better protect the children’s mental, physical and academic wellbeing, while allowing them to maintain their usual routine.
What was agreed in 2022?
Sources close to Pique gave La Vanguardia their interpretation of the agreement reached in 2022 and explained the implications of Shakira’s current application.
According to those sources, the children’s trips to Barcelona during certain holidays formed part of the arrangement that allowed Shakira to move with them to Miami.
“The agreement stated that during breaks in the American school calendar, each lasting approximately one week, Milan and Sasha would be in Barcelona with their father’s family: their uncles, aunts and grandparents. They would go to the house in Bolvir,” Pique’s associates told the newspaper.
“In return, the father agreed to them moving to Miami with their mother.”
The agreement followed lengthy negotiations, culminating in a meeting lasting almost 12 hours at the family’s former home. It allowed the children to relocate to the United States with Shakira, while giving Pique extensive visiting rights.
Sources close to the former footballer said the agreement required Pique to travel to Miami each month and spend nine days with his sons. “He always keeps his promise,” they added.
Milan and Sasha were also due to travel to Barcelona during certain public holidays to spend time with their father and his family. Suggested dates included Thanksgiving and the American schools’ spring break at the end of March, enabling them to visit Spain without missing lessons or activities.
The agreement also divided half of the summer and Christmas holidays between the parents. That is the specific arrangement Shakira is now seeking to change.
Separation agreement
The separation agreement was approved by a judge in Barcelona in December 2022, after several months of negotiations that followed the couple’s announcement of their split in June that year.
Sources close to Pique believe Shakira’s proposal directly affects the clause requiring the children to travel to Barcelona at specified points during the academic year.
“She wants him to be the one who always travels; that is what the whole matter is based on,” the sources said.
