The 19-year-old was originally denied permission to stay in this country, but the Home Office have reconsidered and Tuilagi has been granted indefinite leave to remain in the country, which will allow him to play with Tigers.
Peter Wheeler, Leicester Tigers rugby director, said: “This is great news for Manu because he wants to play rugby professionally in this country.
“On behalf of Manu and his family, Leicester Tigers would like to thank everyone who has shown their support for his case.
“We are very grateful for the support of Leicestershire Members of Parliament Edward Garnier, Keith Vaz and Andrew Robathan, as well as the Rugby Football Union.
“We would also like to express our thanks to the Leicester Mercury and its readers who helped to stimulate such great public support, and to The Rugby Paper who helped to raise awareness and excellent support from within the rugby community.
“The legal team acting on Manu’s behalf said the support of everyone who wrote letters or joined social networking groups and petitions helped to illustrate to the authorities exactly the strength of feeling in the community for giving this young man the right to remain in this country and play his part for English rugby.”
Tuilagi, the sixth member of his family to enjoy links with Leicester Tigers, said: “I always wanted to stay in Leicester, I went to school in this area and my friends are here.
“It is a big day for me to be told this good news and now I can concentrate on my rugby career with Leicester Tigers.
“I would like to say thank-you to everyone who has supported me throughout this difficult time and I hope I can repay them by doing my best for Leicester Tigers in future.”
