Samsamjsam has launched an aggressive customer acquisition drive as the May comprehensive income tax filing season begins, reflecting concerns that even Korea's top tax platform cannot afford to be complacent as rivals rapidly expand their services.
According to industry sources on Tuesday, Jobis & Villains, the operator of Samsamjsam, has unveiled "Safe Refund Compensation Program Season 3," a revamped compensation system timed for the May comprehensive income tax filing period. The program is a customer protection scheme in which Samsamjsam provides compensation when the actual refund amount for users of its simplified filing (refund) service differs from the previously announced estimated refund, or when a refund turns into a payment. The centerpiece of Season 3 is raising the compensation cap to an industry-leading 2 million won. There is also no limit on the number of compensation claims, eliminating the inconvenience of having to submit them all at once.
Samsamjsam has also become the first in the tax-tech industry to introduce a "pay-later system." Under this approach, customers pay the service fee only after receiving their actual refund, with the final payment determined based on the actual refund amount. If the refund is reduced, the service fee is adjusted by the difference, and if there is no refund, no fee is charged.
The company also released a new brand film featuring actors Son Suk-ku and Choi Woo-shik. In the video, the two actors appear side by side wearing leather jackets emblazoned with the number "3." Playing two "Sam (3)" characters, they take on the role of Samsamjsam (3.3) agents who, together with a dog named "Jjeom (.)," track down hidden money. The brand film focuses on Samsamjsam's role as a "Money Finder" that helps users recover easily overlooked funds and benefits in daily life, including tax refunds, medical expense refunds, and government subsidies.
Samsamjsam's aggressive push comes as competing platforms such as Toss Income are rapidly gaining ground in the market. Toss began offering tax services after acquiring Taxasoft in 2024. Industry analysts say Toss has been benefiting from integration effects by offering the service to users of its super-app.
As Samsamjsam moves to defend its market leadership, Toss Income has also been focusing on enhancing user convenience by launching services such as "This Year's Refund Preview," which allows users to check their estimated refund in advance. "With significant pushback from the Korean Association of Certified Public Tax Accountants and intensifying competition among platforms, the key question is how much impact Samsamjsam's celebrity advertising and pay-later system will deliver this May," an industry official said.
