"Tax Platforms Improve Consumer Welfare by Enabling Taxpayer Refund Rights"

Joint Study by Sungkyunkwan University and Southern Illinois University
Analysis of Approximately 3.19 Million Tax Filings on Samzzamssam

An academic study has found that tax platforms such as Samzzamssam are improving consumer welfare by helping taxpayers claim unexercised refund rights, reducing the cost of filing taxes, and providing the flexibility to choose when to file.

According to Jobis & Villains and others in the industry on September 30, Professor Park Minsoo of Sungkyunkwan University’s Department of Economics and Professor Lee Sujeong of Southern Illinois University’s Department of Economics analyzed Samzzamssam’s anonymized, individual tax filing data. Their findings show that taxpayers enjoyed a variety of benefits: discovering unclaimed refund rights and receiving financial gains, saving time and gaining flexibility in choosing when to file, and alleviating the payment burden experienced during the filing process.

The first benefit the research team identified is the financial utility of realizing unclaimed refunds as actual refunds. Taxpayers can apply for refunds for up to six years, including the most recent tax year, but many are unaware of this fact. Indeed, 45% of first-time users of Samzzamssam filed at least one belated return or correction request in addition to their regular tax filing.

The second benefit is reducing filing time and expanding the flexibility to choose when to file. Among users who used Samzzamssam for the first time this past May, about 30% completed their filing within five to six minutes of starting. The expansion of filing options is also notable. During this year's regular tax filing period, 42.4% of users filed during weekday daytime hours, while nearly six out of ten completed their tax filing in the evenings or on weekends. This indicates that taxpayers have more control to choose their preferred timing for filing taxes.

Lastly, the research team found that Samzzamssam’s introduction of post-payment not only delays the point at which service fees are paid but also reduces both the financial burden and psychological barriers faced by users during filing, thereby shortening the overall time required to complete the process. In fact, as the user interface and service procedures have been improved every year, the total time required for filing has shown a downward trend.

The research team further analyzed that the benefits of tax platforms are especially pronounced for so-called gig workers, including freelancers and short-term platform workers. The average annual income of gig workers was about 5.4 million won, significantly lower than the 23.1 million won earned on average by users with a mix of employment income or other types of income. However, the average annual refund amounts for the two groups were similar, at 120,000 won and 125,000 won respectively, indicating that gig workers experience a substantially greater utility from refunds.

The study analyzed 2,239,556 users and 3,198,315 tax filings from June 2023 to May 2026. The paper summarizing these results will be presented at an academic conference and submitted to journals by the end of the year. Professor Park Minsoo of Sungkyunkwan University’s Department of Economics commented, “This study is significant because it examined the benefits of online tax platforms by distinguishing taxpayers according to their income levels and main sources of income. Based on actual usage data, we were able to confirm the role online platforms can play for low-income and gig worker groups, who tend to face relatively high costs and time burdens in the conventional tax-filing process.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.