Alivereti Raka will formally become a French citizen next Saturday which means that France could use him as early as the 2019 Six Nations.
Raka’s name appeared on a list of new nationals published in the Journal Officiel, the daily government gazette of all legal matters in France.
He has cleared the final hurdle to selection for Les Bleus that had been put in place by French Rugby Union President Bernard Laporte.
Becoming a citizen usually requires living permanently in France for a minimum of five years, demonstrating a reasonable level of spoken and written French and knowing something of the country’s history and culture.
The required length of time living in France can be reduced in certain circumstances – which has allowed Raka to apply earlier.
Since he joined join Clermont Academy in November 2014, Raka has married a French national and become a father which has reduced his residency requirement by one year. He still had to pass language and citizenship tests to qualify for a French passport.
Raka has scored 29 tries in 38 outings for Clermont, since making his first team debut in September 2015.
Last season, he had touched down 13 times in 11 outings in all competitions when a torn ACL against Saracens in the Champions Cup ended his campaign in December 2017.
[Source: RugbyPass]
