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NTS launches free tax refund platform

Published: 31 Mar. 2025, 17:05

National Tax Service director of information management Lee Seong-jin introduces the agency's income tax refund platform One Click at a news briefing at Sejong government complex on March 31. [NEWS1]

Korea’s National Tax Service (NTS) launched a new income tax refund platform called One Click on Monday, aiming to streamline the refund process for individuals who may be unaware of their eligibility or miss the filing deadline.

The new government-run service mirrors offerings from private platforms such as Samjjeomsam, or 3.3, which typically charge service fees ranging from 10 to 20 percent of the refund amount. In contrast, One Click is free.

The service does not require users to submit additional documents, such as family relationship certificates, minimizing the risk of personal data exposure, according to the NTS’s director of information management, Lee Seong-jin. He added that because the NTS calculates refunds based on a review of applicable deductions, users are not at risk of being penalized for overclaimed refunds.

The service is up for use for approximately 3.11 million people, including freelancers, self-employed individuals and employees with multiple sources of income. The main beneficiaries will be workers who hold multiple jobs and older people who continue to work after retirement. Those receiving a refund of 5,000 won ($3.40) or more are eligible.

To check if they're eligibility for a refund, users can log into the NTS’s Hometax website via a mobile phone or PC and click the “One Click Refund Filing” button. Once logged in, the refund amount is displayed, and the user can submit their claim in a single step.

For those who file without modifying the prefilled information, the agency expects to issue refunds within one month with a significantly shorter review process.

The NTS is currently notifying eligible taxpayers through mobile alerts bearing the agency’s official certification mark. Those receiving such messages are encouraged to visit the Hometax site to verify their refund eligibility. The tax authority also plans to coordinate with companies such as Coupang, TMAP and Albamon to notify gig workers, who represent a large portion of eligible recipients.

A public agency’s entry into a sector previously served by private businesses has raised concerns about potential impacts on the market. In response, an NTS official said the platform's primary objective is to enhance public service, noting that the initiative does not prevent private entities from offering competing or complementary products.

“The goal is to provide better services to the public,” the official said. “There’s still room for innovative niche platforms to emerge.”

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.

BY JANG WON-SEOK [[email protected]]