In this episode, Tom Fox welcomes Michelle Tavares, a former federal government forensic accountant and former USCIS EB-5 compliance officer who helped rewrite the EB-5 statute into the Reform and Integrity Act (RIA).
Tavares explains EB-5 as an investor visa program where foreign nationals invest $1,000,000 (or $800,000 in a TEA) in U.S. projects that must create jobs, and she describes how EB-5 transactions sit at the intersection of immigration, securities, banking/AML, and corporate governance, making consistent documentation and a unified “story” critical for adjudication. She outlines the roles of regional centers, NCEs, and JCEs; the challenges of proving a lawful source of funds; and the importance of third-party oversight, KYC/AML controls, and tone-from-the-top governance. She discusses how RIA added compliance expectations, penalties, and increased scrutiny of regional centers and overseas promoters, and shares why she founded Standard & Proof Investigations to close knowledge gaps in EB-5 compliance.
Key Highlights:
- EB-5 Basics and Why It Matters
- RIA Overhaul and New Compliance
- Inside the Adjudicator Mindset
- Boardroom Governance for EB-5
- Third-Party Oversight Essentials
Resources:
Standard & Proof Investigations
Michelle Tavares on LinkedIn
Tom Fox
My first work of general non-fiction is now out: Deluge Before Dawn, the story of the 2025 flood in Kerr County, Texas, which killed 119 people and devastated a county. It is a story of tragedy, heartbreak, survival, and resilience.
It is available on the following sites:
This week only, the Kindle e-book version is available for $0.99 on Amazon.