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Aotearoa New Zealand is the first country in the world to have explicitly legal drug checking. 

Drug checking is a proven, effective harm reduction tool that saves lives, by providing people with accurate information to make safer decisions. The Drug Foundation is keen to see it expanded to more communities across Aotearoa, including communities working with people who use injected drugs and people who are homeless.

Drug checking services are offered in a few other countries like Netherlands, Portugal, United Kingdom, Switzerland and Spain. However, they all still operate in a legal grey area, in that they’re not explicitly illegal - but they're not legal either.

Drug checking is a free service which tests the safety of recreational drugs. KnowYourStuffNZ, the Drug Foundation, the Needle Exchange and ESR are NZ's legal drug checking service providers. ESR also provides technical oversight.

Find your nearest drug checking clinic with this calendar on The Level. These clinics are free, legal and discreet. 

If you can't make it to a clinic, you can check your drugs at home using a reagent test.

 

Drug Checking FAQ

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