Bond Management for Surety Bond Producers

Surety bond producers use NMLS to create, manage, and maintain Electronic Surety Bonds (ESBs) in coordination with surety companies and licensees. This section describes the producer’s responsibilities and available tools for managing bonds electronically within NMLS.

Bond management in NMLS encompasses all activities a surety bond producer performs to support the Electronic Surety Bond (ESB) lifecycle on behalf of licensed companies. These activities include creating new bonds, issuing riders or endorsements, managing returned or revised bonds, and maintaining accurate bond data during annual renewals. Each action helps ensure that information shared among the licensee, surety company, and regulator remains consistent and up to date.

Overview of surety bond producer responsibilities

  • Create new ESBs for licensees that have granted the producer authority in NMLS.
  • Submit riders to update existing bond information such as amounts, effective dates, or licensee details.
  • Remove authority for a licensee when no active or pending bonds exist.
  • Respond to regulator returns by correcting or recreating bonds as needed.
  • Issue revised form bonds when required by state regulators.
  • Maintain awareness of bond form versioning and upgrade requirements communicated through NMLS notifications.

Collaboration with surety companies

Most ESB actions in NMLS require coordination between the surety bond producer and the surety company underwriting the bond. For example, a producer may initiate a bond or rider that must then be signed by the surety company before submission to the regulator. Both entities receive system notifications for returned, revised, or upgraded bonds to ensure timely action.

Note: Because ESB records are shared among the licensee, surety bond producer, surety company, and regulator, all parties can view bond statuses in real time. This transparency helps reduce errors and prevents duplicate submissions.

Use the links in the left Table of Contents to access detailed procedures for managing bonds in NMLS as a surety bond producer.

Note: Only surety bond producers have access to tools such as licensee authority management. Surety company users perform administrative actions such as signing, deleting, or voiding bonds, which are covered in the Surety Company Guide.