On 2 November, he made his international debut against England, playing off the interchange bench in the Kiwis' 12-26 loss at KC Stadium. In the second test of the series, he was chosen to start at halfback over fellow rookie Tuimoala Lolohea, in the Kiwis' 9-2 win at London Olympic Stadium. On 14 November, in the third and final test match against England, Nikorima kept his starting halfback spot for the Kiwis in their 14-20 final loss at DW Stadium. On 6 May, Nikorima played for New Zealand against Australia in the 2016 Anzac Test, starting at five-eighth after being originally named on the interchange bench in the Kiwis' 16-0 loss at Hunter Stadium. In Round 17 against the Melbourne Storm, he dislocated his shoulder during the first half, where he played the rest of the match with the injury. After the match, he was ruled out for the rest of the year. On 7 September, he extended his contract with the Broncos for a further 2 years, until the end of the 2018 season. He finished the 2016 season having played in 16 matches and scoring 2 tries for the Broncos. Nikorima spent the early rounds of the season playing in the QLD Cup for the Norths Devils before making his first appearance for the Broncos in Round 6 against the Sydney Roosters, playing off the interchange bench in the 32-8 win at Suncorp Stadium. When Broncos first choice halfback Ben Hunt was sidelined with a hamstring injury for 5 matches, Nikorima was selected to fill in at halfback and it come with great success resulting with the Broncos winning 5 matches in a row and him scoring 4 tries in that period of time. On 5 May 2017, Nikorima played for New Zealand in the 2017 ANZAC Test against Australia where he played off the interchange bench in the 30-12 loss at Canberra Stadium. On 17 July 2017, Nikorima extended his contract with the Broncos to the end of the 2020 season. Nikorima finished the 2017 NRL season with him playing in 19 matches and scoring 7 tries for the Broncos. On 5 October 2017, Nikorima was named in the 24-man New Zealand Kiwis squad for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup. In the Kiwis first pool match against Samoa, Nikorima scored his first international try for the Kiwis in the 38-8 win at Mt Smart Stadium. Nikorima finished the Kiwis disappointing campaign with him playing in 3 matches and scoring 1 try.