(a) Sponsorship Required. In order to act in the capacity of an originator an originator's license must be sponsored in NMLS by a mortgage company licensed under Finance Code Chapter 156 or a mortgage banker registered under Finance Code Chapter 157. In order to establish sponsorship by a mortgage company or a mortgage banker the originator must amend his or her NMLS license record (MU4 filing) to reflect employment by such mortgage company or mortgage banker and grant such mortgage company or mortgage banker access to his or her license records in order to allow the mortgage company or mortgage banker to register a relationship with the originator in NMLS. The mortgage company or mortgage banker must make corresponding license record amendments in NMLS in order to establish such sponsorship as provided by this section, including a request to establish such sponsorship. Sponsorship is not effective until the mortgage company's or mortgage banker's sponsorship request has been reviewed and approved by the Department. A licensee must not act or attempt to act in the capacity of an originator on behalf of a mortgage company or mortgage banker until sponsorship with such mortgage company or mortgage banker has been established and is effective.
(b) Termination of Sponsorship. Sponsorship may be terminated by the sponsoring mortgage company or mortgage banker, or the originator. If sponsorship is terminated, the party terminating the sponsorship must immediately make a license record amendment in NMLS notifying the Department that the sponsorship has been terminated, as provided by Tex. Fin. Code §156.211 and §157.019.
(c) Lapsing of Sponsorship; Inactive Status. Failure by an originator to maintain sponsorship will result in the license automatically reverting to an inactive status, during which time the licensee must not act or attempt to act in the capacity of an originator.

Source Note: The provisions of this §81.101 adopted to be effective July 5, 2012, 37 TexReg 4873; amended to be effective November 4, 2021, 46 TexReg 7392