Stanislav Varga has signed for Celtic and has been granted the work permit necessary for him to be registered as a Parkhead player.
However, the Football Association is currently refusing to issue the International Registration Transfer Certificate (IRTC) required by the Scottish FA to enable them to register the former Sunderland defender as a Celtic player.
The SFA has therefore asked FIFA to intervene and instruct the English FA to issue the IRTC in accordance with FIFA regulations.
However, it is unlikely that he will be cleared in time to be involved in the match against Motherwell at Fir Park tomorrow afternoon.
A Celtic spokesman confirmed: "We and the SFA are hoping that the issue will be resolved quickly and we have people on our side."
The club, meanwhile, have also announced a loss of £5.64million before tax in their interim results for the six months to December 31.
Celtic remain involved in four football competitions, including the UEFA Cup and turnover was reduced to £30.01m largely as a result of not progressing to UEFA Champions' League first group stage.
They also revealed a profit from operations of £200,000 while £4.82m was invested in intangible fixed assets including signing two new players.