Quade Cooper allegedly denied Australian citizenship

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Former Wallabies flyhalf Quade Cooper took to Twitter after his application for Australian citizenship was rejected, seemingly not for the first time.

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Cooper, who played over 70 times for the Wallabies, was born in New Zealand. Despite being resident in Australia, playing over 120 times for the Queensland Reds and age-group rugby for the Wallabies, Cooper would travel on his New Zealand passport.

In 2016, it was revealed that his lack of Australian citizenship cost him representing his country at the Rio Olympic Games for rugby sevens.

In order to obtain citizenship, would-be Australians need to comply to strict criteria relating to the time spent living in the country without any extended absence. Cooper, however, has spent extended periods playing rugby in Japan, most recently with the Kintetsu Liners.

It is possible for applicants to be exempted from the residency requirements in some cases, and this would have been Cooper’s hope.

Since posting his rejection letter, there has been outcry online over Cooper’s unsuccessful citizenship application. Former Australia teammate Drew Mitchell called for ‘common sense’ while Aussie tennis player John Millman described the decision as a ‘joke’.

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Andre-Pierre Cronje