Stages after PR submission

Generally, your application will follow the below path after the submission of e-APR (Electronic Application for Permanent Resident)

AOR → NA1 → MEP → IP1 → NA2 → IP2 → NA3 → PPR → CoPR

1. BG Check: Not Applicable (NA1)
2. Medical passed – (MEP)
3. BG Check In Progress (IP1) – R10 check is done here.
4. BG Check: Not Applicable (NA2) – Eligibility check is done here. 
5. BG Check: In Progress (IP2) – 
6. BG Check: Not Applicable (NA3) – In most cases this may not be seen.
7. PPR: Passport Request
8. CoPR: Confirmation of Permanent Residence

AOR: This is a status you will see within 24 hours after submission of your e-APR (Electronic Application for Permanent Resident) application.

NA1: “Not applicable“. This will be your BG status message as soon as you submit and get AOR. Typically, this will be status till the time you get your medical passed status.

MEP: “You passed the medical exam“. This will generally happen 7-45 days after your AOR. For PNP applicants it has been noticed that it takes more time in comparison.

IP1: This will happen one or two days after your medical. Sometimes on the same day itself. BG status message in this stage will be “Your application is in progress. We will send you a message when we start your background check.”. CIC agents will do R10 completeness check. A strict liability is placed on the applicants to ensure that they have uploaded all documents as per the requirements of their application. Any lapse in this will see a straightforward brutal rejection of the application. Criminality checks are also initiated during this stage. All PCCs are checked against their respective stay period and with the issuing authorities for their authenticity. Once they feel everything is good the status should change to NA. These things will happen at CIO Office (Centralized Intake Office).

NA2: “Not applicable“. This will signify that IP1 is completed. Sometimes IP1 will take few hours and if you have not checked your account during this time when the status changed to IP1, it won’t be possible to know that if you are in NA1 or NA2. Your file will be transferred to CPC/LVO (Case Processing Center) where agents will do eligibility assessments. If they feel everything is okay, then they will provide their recommendation to Visa Officer and same time they will initiate Security Checks. This is the most important stage in the process as this is where all the verifications for the application is done. Employment reference letters, POF, proof of relationship etc are all checked for their authenticity and credibility. Various methods are adopted by CIC for verification process which is not limited to using a 3rd party verification agency, social media accounts, employer/employee records available online.
This is also the stage where it can take the most amount of time of the entire average timeline. The trends suggest that applications on NA2 have been cleared as fast as 1 day and have been stuck here for as long as 90-100 days.

IP2: BG status message in this stage will be “We are processing your background check. we will send you a message if we need more information.“. Visa Officer starts reviewing or after reviewing all agents recommendations. At this time security checks that are conducted in association with CBSA/CSIS would also be in process. Once the checks are complete, VO will make final approval notes and PPR mail will be triggered if the applicant paid RPRF up front. PPR mails these days are averaging 1-40 days after the IP2 stage. These tasks are completed at CPC/LVO.

NA3: “Not applicable“. This will signify that IP2 is completed. This status is not visible in most cases and direct PPR request is placed from IP2.

PPR: Passport Request. You will get an email for that and you may not get an update in your CIC account for this. There will be no update on the CIC account. You would need to send 2 passport size photos per applicant as per CIC requirements, a copy of the PPR email, passports, a letter with applicant's height and eye colour within 30 days for all the accompanying members.

ADR: Sometimes an additional document is requested in IP1 or IP2 stage. This is when CIC needs additional information which may not be clear or has been identified as gaps or raised a flag. An email, as well as message in your CIC account, will be sent.

CIC has stated that it processes 80% of the applications within 6months period. This period starts from the R10 completeness stage. Post June when CIC adopted the new Sibling points rule and French language points rule, a drastic reduction in the process times have been noticed. The current timelines are averaging from 18days-120 days for 80% of the applications from AOR-PPR. This is phenomenal in the history of Canadian Immigration process, since earlier it would take months and years to get the coveted PR visa.

Despite this faster processing times, there is an increase in posts and messages about "what is happening with my application", even when the applicant has only been in the process for 30-60days. The reason is drawing comparison with applicants whose timelines showed must faster completion. What one must realise is that each application is unique no matter how the generic the profile looks like. Each application has different and unique set of background and circumstances that IRCC needs to check for completeness and authenticity. Various factors will influence the speed of this process and a lot of that also depends on the workloads of the case officer of assigned local visa office.

Disclaimer: This is the trend which is seen with most of the applicants. It may or may not match with your application process flow and timeline. The actual clarity of application status can be retrieved via GCMS notes only. This process has never been announced officially by CIC. The assumption of this process is made based on accounts/experiences/timelines provided by countless applicants who have been through the process and also by reviewing GCMS notes and their timeline records shared by various applicants on different public forums.