The French football league (LFP) will ask FIFA for further clarification before it rules on whether Hatem Ben Arfa can play for Nice, RMC reports.
Ben Arfa, 27, joined Nice as a free agent earlier this month following the cancellation of his contract with Newcastle United by mutual consent.
However, with the France international having played for the Premier League club's under-21 side in August and made eight Premier League appearances while on loan at Hull City in the first half of the season, the French FA (FFF) asked FIFA whether Ben Arfa would be infringing rules on players not featuring for three clubs in a single season if he played for Nice.
In a letter to the FFF, the English FA stated Ben Arfa's appearance for Newcastle should not be counted as being in official competition. However, an initial letter from FIFA to the FFF said Ben Arfa would be breaking the rules if he played for Nice, but added that its opinion was purely informative, not binding.
The FFF then turned the case over to the league's Judicial Commission, which decided on Tuesday to ask for more information from FIFA before deciding on the player's fate.
Ben Arfa, who previously played for Lyon and Marseille in his native country, has been training with Nice since early January and has already been presented to media as a new recruit by the south-coast club.