Fiscal authorities have instructed the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) the foremost tax collection arm of the government to raise at least P830 billion this year, it was learned Thursday.

"The BIR is now ready to implement several tax measures to meet the collection target and I am optimistic that we can do it," Revenue Commissioner Joel L. Tan-Torres said.

The new game plan included the intensified tax evasion drive, simplified process in the audit of financial statements of the country's 1,000 top corporate taxpayers, enhancement of taxpayer service and enforcement campaigns, close monitoring of recently enacted tax eroding laws and investment incentive programs.

Tan-Torres said they will be hiring additional 6,000 lawyers and accountants, boosting the BIR workforce to some 16,000.

He said the bulk of these new recruits will be fielded in legal and prosecution divisions to strengthen the run-after-tax-evaders (RATE) program.

Meanwhile, Tan-Torres said the agency has exceeded its collection December by more than P1.5 billion raising a total of P61.5 billion.

It was only the second time that the BIR exceeded its monthly collection target for 2009, and came during the first month of Tan-Torres's designation as head of the bureau.

But despite the hefty collection surplus last month the BIR failed to hit its 2009 collection target by a big margin.

Initial collection figures showed that the BIR raised only P743.4 billion, short by about P54.5 billion of the target of P798 billion.