"We are excited to announce that Rene Ranger is back for the 2018 Northland Mitre10Cup season," Northland announced.
Ranger, 31, touched down in La Rochelle mid-season but never really settled, playing just seven matches, three in the European Champions Cup and four in the Top 14.
It is a second homecoming for the six-time capped All Black, who previously returned after two seasons with La Rochelle's Top 14 rivals Montpellier, for whom he turned out 38 times.
Ranger will be leaving a La Rochelle team still looking for a coach after the departure of Patrice Collazo following a disappointing season that saw the club finish seventh in the league, out of the top-six play-off spots.
Ulster's Kiwi coach Jono Gibbes, previously assistant coach at Leinster and Clermont, is the name most often cited as Collazo's likely replacement.