You will not receive any acknowledgement from CIC until they have reviewed your application for basic completeness and eligibility.
At that time, they will either charge your credit card or cash your demand draft, whichever way you paid.
If you paid by credit card, and you see a transaction in the proper amount from CIC, you know they have reviewed your application and you are likely moving on.
If you paid by demand draft, you will have to check with your bank to see if it has been cashed. Some banks may be able to tell you this.
If you have applied for a Canadian visa before and have a UCI, you can also monitor your status in ECAS.
If you can't/don't monitor your status using any of the above indicators, the first communication you receive from CIC will be either an e-mail or paper mail (if you didn't provide an e-mail address) notification of your positive eligibility review, or a return of your application in the mail alone with a letter informing you of negative eligibility review.
You can expect a PER e-mail roughly 8-12 weeks after your application was received by CIC, but there is wide variation. If your application is returned it will depend on where you are and the speed of the mail.
