Section 81-5-41 - Foreign investors may engage in certain activities without qualifying(1) Without excluding other activities within this state, or activities outside this state involving taking security of real estate located in this state, which may not constitute transacting or engaging in business in this state, any of the following, not organized under the laws of the State of Mississippi and which has no place of business within this state: a mutual savings bank or mutual savings fund society, or any national banking association now or hereafter organized under the laws of the United States of America, or any bank or trust company now or hereafter incorporated or organized under the laws of any state of the United States of America (including the District of Columbia,) or any insurance company, or any corporation all the capital stock of which (except directors' qualifying shares) is owned by one or more such mutual savings banks, mutual savings fund societies, national banking associations, banks, trust companies or insurance companies, engaged in making or investing in loans secured by real estate or lending on the security of real estate, shall not be considered to be transacting or engaging in business in this state, by reason of carrying on in this state any one or more of the following activities: (a) The acquisition or making of loans, or participation or interests therein, secured by deeds of trust, mortgages or mortgage notes on real property situated in Mississippi pursuant to commitment agreements or arrangements made prior to or following the origination or creation of said loans;(b) The making directly or through or in participation with national or state banks having banking offices in this state or other Mississippi concerns engaged within this state in the business of making or servicing such loans, of loans secured by such mortgages or mortgage notes, or loans secured by assignments or pledges of obligations secured by such mortgages or mortgage notes;(c) The ownership, modification, renewals, extensions, transfers or foreclosure of such loans, mortgages or mortgage notes, or the acceptance of substitute or additional obligators thereon;(d) The maintenance of bank accounts in national or state banks having banking offices within this state in connection with the collection or servicing of such loans, mortgages or mortgage notes;(e) The maintenance of depository or pledge-holder agreements or arrangements with national or state banks having banking offices within this state in connection with the taking of assignments or pledges of such loans, mortgages or mortgage notes;(f) The making, collection and servicing of such loans, mortgages or mortgage notes directly or through a Mississippi concern engaged in the business within this state of servicing real estate loans;(g) The taking of deeds to the mortgaged property for a reasonable period of time either in lieu of foreclosure or for the purpose of transferring title either to the Federal Housing Administration or to the Veterans Administration as the insurer or guarantor;(h) The acquisition of title to real property for a reasonable period of time under foreclosure sale or from the owner in lieu of foreclosure;(i) The management, rental, maintenance and sale, or the operating, maintaining, renting or otherwise dealing with, selling or disposing of real property acquired under foreclosure sale or by agreement in lieu thereof;(j) The maintaining or defending of any actions or suits relating to such loans, deeds of trust, mortgages, mortgage notes, agreements or other arrangements or activities referred to herein or incidental thereto; and(k) The physical inspection and appraisal of real property in Mississippi as security for mortgage notes or mortgages and negotiations for such loans.(2) The acquisition or making of loans, or participations or interest therein, which are secured by mortgages or mortgage notes on real property located in this state and the doing of any or all the other acts or things with respect hereto enumerated in this section, by any such bank, trust company, or any other corporation when acting as fiduciary, trustee or agent of any trust, whether testamentary or inter vivos, including foundations and trusts established for the purpose of funding pension, profit-sharing or employee benefit plans, or by an endowed institution, foundation or eleemosynary corporation, or by any corporation chartered under the laws of another state as a group insurance and annuity association and engaged in the business of insurance, annuities, pensions and retirement plans for any group of persons, educational institutions and others, or by any corporation all the capital stock of which (except directors' qualifying shares) is owned by one or more of the entities referred to above, shall likewise not be considered to be transacting or engaging in business in this state; and any such corporation, when so acting as fiduciary, trustee or agent, and any such trust, endowed institution, foundation, eleemosynary corporation or group insurance and annuity association shall be entitled to all the rights, privileges and exceptions set forth in this section.(3) Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting the benefits and application of this section to loans insured or guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration, the Veterans Administration, or any other governmental agency or department, and the benefits of this section shall extend to and include, all loans or participations or interests therein, secured by mortgages or mortgage notes on real property situated in Mississippi, whether or not insured or guaranteed.(4) No such corporation, institution or entity coming under the provisions of this section, and confining its business operations in Mississippi within the limits herein provided, shall be required to qualify to do business in this state by filing its charter in the Office of the Secretary of State or to pay any tax or fee required to be paid by corporations under any law of this state. However, such exemption shall not include: (a) Ad valorem taxes assessed against any real or personal property which such corporation, institution or entity may own in the State of Mississippi; (b) Mississippi income, franchise and privilege tax which may result from the sale, ownership or control after acquisition of such property by foreclosure, or acquisition in lieu of foreclosure, either by virtue of the value of the specific piece of property so foreclosed or to which title is taken in lieu of foreclosure, or by virtue of the rental or other income realized from said property.(5) Any bank, trust company, mutual savings bank, pension fund, mutual savings fund society, mutual banking association, insurance company or any other type of organization defined in this section and investing funds in Mississippi may sue or be sued within this state in relation to such mortgages or deeds of trust on real properties, securities or debts and service of process may be performed by service upon any custodian or agent appointed within the state. If no such custodian or agent has been appointed, the Secretary of State shall be and he is hereby appointed and shall remain as the duly authorized agent of such organization upon whom such service of process may be had. In cases where such organization is sued, the venue of such action shall be in the county of the residence of the plaintiffs, or any of them, except where land is involved, in which case, venue shall be in the county in which the land, or any part of it, is located. The Secretary of State, upon the receipt of process by him on such organization, shall forthwith forward notice of the same by registered mail with return receipt requested to the post office address of such nonresident corporation, mutual savings bank or association and shall make a notation of said fact upon his process record to such effect.
(6) Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit any corporation to do business in violation of the Small Loan Law of the State of Mississippi nor of the laws of Mississippi governing the organization and operation of building and loan associations or societies, or savings and loan associations or societies, nor to limit the authority of corporations authorized to do unlimited business under the general laws of Mississippi, or to qualify to be so authorized.Codes, 1942, § 5287.5; Laws, 1954, ch. 163, §§ 1-3 [Para.Para. 1-3]; Laws, 1968, ch. 254, § 1; Laws, 1978, ch. 514, § 7; Laws, 1996, ch. 400, § 46, eff. 3/19/1996.