Special direction after entry for working holiday visa declined

[eduncan]

Hi,
So my boyfriend and I applied for whv together and got them approved. When we arrived we were questioned about past drug usage. The officer lied and told my boyfriend that any drugs he had done in the past, even years ago would come up, and to be honest or he would be charged for lying. My boyfriend admitted to smoking pot occasionally and to trying psychedelics during a lengthy interview. After the interview he was denied entry on the basis that he would likely wind up in prison in NZ for his "regular drug use". He has no convictions of anything and wouldn't test positive for anything now. The officer admitted after the decision was made that they were not allowed to do any testing. They said we could apply for a special direction to request entry again. I was allowed in and am here now on my whv. Can anyone offer advice on what we should say in the special direction?? Or any help? My boyfriend is an amazing guy and not a drug-user. Thanks so much!

[swearwolves]

Your boyfriend, who admitted to smoking pot and trying psychedelics, thus clearly proving he has no regard for the law, is somehow an amazing guy? You might need to apply for *really* special direction, if there is such a thing.

[G-Mo]

But, he is a drug-user... Even he admitted it.

[dharder]

As the other posters have pointed out, he did use drugs, so the officers were probably well within their rights to refuse him entry.

As that is done now, and they suggested you could try a special direction, you might have to approach this slightly differently than your post implies. To start with 'the officer lied' is not a good idea, and to say that your bf hasn't used drugs when he clearly has doesn't sound good either. I suspect your best bet from here is to clarify that this was all in the past, he knows it was wrong, is now an upstanding member of the community, etc, that kind of thing. Bear in mind that it is you who wants something from immigration, not the other way round. So however you feel personally about his drug use or the attitude of the officers involved has no place in any future correspondence with the authorities.

[Sun777]

As the other posters have pointed out, he did use drugs, so the officers were probably well within their rights to refuse him entry.

As that is done now, and they suggested you could try a special direction, you might have to approach this slightly differently than your post implies. To start with 'the officer lied' is not a good idea, and to say that your bf hasn't used drugs when he clearly has doesn't sound good either. I suspect your best bet from here is to clarify that this was all in the past, he knows it was wrong, is now an upstanding member of the community, etc, that kind of thing. Bear in mind that it is you who wants something from immigration, not the other way round. So however you feel personally about his drug use or the attitude of the officers involved has no place in any future correspondence with the authorities.

Best answer so far

[eduncan]

Thank you so much for your suggestion. He isn't a drug addict or regular user but has tried drugs in the past and was being honest. I think we will go through the complaints procedure to deal with the manipulation/threats by the officer. Do you know if it is possible to re-apply for a special direction if it is at first denied? Also can character references be attached to the special direction along with a drug test signed by a doctor? Thank you.