Wallabies and Waratahs star Bernard Foley re-committed to the Australian Rugby Union on Thursday, signing until 2018.
Fly-half Foley, who kicked the winning penalty for the Waratahs in the Super Rugby final in 2014, has signed a unique contract that gives him the option to also spend two years playing in the Japanese domestic competition Top League.
The Top League runs in the Australian off-season, so Foley's Waratahs commitments would not be affected.
The 25-year-old will remain eligible for international selection, as per coach Michael Cheika's revelation in February he would overturn the pre-requisite for Wallabies eligibility of playing only for an Australian team.
"I have an incredibly strong desire to continue representing Australia and the Waratahs, and this deal allows me to do that for at least another three years," Foley said.
"I'd like to thank Australian Rugby and the Waratahs for understanding my desire to experience a new culture and rugby environment in Japan, while continuing to provide me an opportunity for represent my state and country."
Cheika said Foley, a former pupil of his at the Waratahs, had room to improve, with 18 international caps and 156 points to his name already.
"Flexible contracting is taken into consideration for exceptional circumstances, and I am confident that he will put his own wellbeing at the front of his priorities and thinking," Cheika said.
"Bernard is a playmaker who is still yet to reach his full potential and we need our best players eligible for Australia - now and in the future.
"Bernard is one of many playmakers in Australian Rugby that will be vying for a Wallabies jumper over the next period.
"This is the environment we will be creating - where players can challenge one another and ultimately make the Wallabies program stronger."