March 30, 2020

NMLS Amends Extension to State Reporting Due Dates, as Coronavirus Still Plagues the Land

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Two days after its original announcement, the NMLS Policy Committee has amended its previously announced 60-day temporary deadline extension for certain types of reporting submitted in NMLS. According to the current posting on the NMLS website, it appears that because the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council announced there would be a 30-day extension for certain reports, the NMLS Policy Committee reduced its extension for filing financial statements and certain other reports from 60 days to 30 days. The revised reporting due date table has also been amended to reflect the new 30-day temporary deadline extension. We do not know the consideration(s) that went into this new decision.

Plus, the NMLS Policy Committee is now encouraging state regulators to be “lenient and not take administrative action if reports are filed within 30 days of the placement of the [NMLS auto-generated] License Item.”

Name of Report  Current Report Due Date  30 Days from Due Date 
MSB Q4 2019 March 31, 2020 April 30, 2020
MCR Q1 2020 May 15, 2020 June 14, 2020
MSB Q1 2020 May 15, 2020 June 14, 2020
MCR Standard Financial Condition 90 days from end of the company’s fiscal year 120 days from the end of the company’s fiscal year ​

 

Name  Current Due Date  30 Days from Due Date 
Financial Statement 90 days from end of the company’s fiscal year 120 days from the end of the company’s fiscal year

​​In our posting dated March 26th regarding the NMLS Policy Changes for COVID-19 notice issued by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (“CSBS”) on March 25th, we provided notice of the NMLS Policy Committee’s decision to implement a 60-day extension for the filing of three reports in the NMLS, (i) the Money Services Business Call Report, (ii)  the Mortgage Call Report, and (iii) Financial Statements. In that posting we noted that some state licensing laws have statutory language that recognizes the filing of certain reports as required by the NMLS, while some state licensing laws may not provide state regulators with discretionary authority to waive the filing or extend the due date of financial statements or other reports.

While the NMLS Policy Committee may have authority as to the manner in which filing due dates are set in the NMLS, New Hampshire regulators have confirmed that they do not have the authority to waive certain statutory deadlines. The New Hampshire regulators stated that they cannot extend the filing due date for financial statements, which despite the NMLS Policy Committee’s notice, must be submitted within 90 days of the company’s fiscal year end.

As we previously suggested, other state regulators may also be unable to temporarily extend certain filing due dates or make certain other concessions to accommodate the various NMLS report filings at this time. When we brought this to the attention of CSBS, CSBS administrators replied that they now “recognize that the [initial] message on the [NMLS] website did not adequately communicate the decision by the NMLS Policy Committee.” Whether the revised and reduced 30-day extension is a decision of the NMLS Policy Committee is unclear, but as of Sunday, this 30-day extension is the extent of the extension authorized by the CSBS for the filing of certain reports.

Administrators at CSBS further indicated that they “intend to reach out to all states to confirm their position as to whether they are able to extend the filing deadlines for financial statements and call reports.” On Sunday, March 29th, in reply to our request, CSBS reconfirmed their intention to do so. In any event, we also will seek do so, and will coordinate our findings with those of CSBS, if CSBS has contacted the regulators in each state.

It is worth noting that New Hampshire, as well as certain other states, do not require audited financial statements. Rather, they will accept internally prepared officer-certified statements. Some state regulators have further advised our office that they do not intend to penalize lenders who file unaudited figures and later need to update or amend the filing once the audited statements are made available.  For those licensees that are experiencing difficulty obtaining an audited financial statement by the current report due date, but can otherwise produce internally prepared statements, it may help to reduce both the number of auto-generated NMLS license items and the number of state posted deficiencies if the licensee: (i) uploads unaudited financials as soon as they can by/or near the current report due date; (ii) indicates that audited financial statements will be submitted when available; and (iii) submits the audited financial statement when received. The NMLS Resource Center lists by state where an audited financial statement is required.

During this time, everyone is working quickly to resolve issues that come to light due to disrupted schedules, but the regulators may not all publish a state-specific resolution at the same time or in the same place. Presently, although it may be more time consuming, the best immediate source for understanding if an extension of time is granted for these filings may be the website of each state, and calling a senior regulator in that state if there is no notice about an extension.  Should any state post a deficiency about a late financial statement or call report filing, we can call the state regulator to request that no financial penalty be imposed.

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