So this is the first level check that usually happens at the Centralized Intake Office. The Program Assistant verifies certain documents like your ECA, IELTS score, PCC, etc., and provides his recommendation. This is basically a no brainer as the documents just need to be verified online on the issuing agency's website. If you have submitted an LOE (Client Information), then that is set for review by an officer.
Similarly, a Case Agent does a more in-depth review of the documents like assessing your work experience, whether your duties in the reference letter are in line with the NOC, years of work ex, your proof of funds, etc. The agent marks his assessment as 'appears to meet' if he is satisfied, or 'review required' if he wants the senior officer to take a closer look. Let's look at the snapshot below.
FSW Having analyzed this application based on the documents submitted by the applicant and the information contained in the file, | make the following recommendation.
MI3 A11.2: Met R75: FSW MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS - Appears Met R76: SELECTION CRITERIA - FSW POINTS : APPEARS TO MEET R76: SELECTION CRITERIA - FUNDS : APPEARS TO MEET FSW points total: 71 Ready to Finalize RPRF: Complete
As you can see, the agent has is broadly satisfied with all your documents and marked your eligibility as 'Met'. At this stage, the RPRF (The Right of Permanent Residence Fee) request is issued to the applicant for further processing of the application. Many people pay this fee in the beginning only so this request is only issued to those who have not paid the entire fee while filing the application. Meeting eligibility requirements is a positive sign and usually the senior officer agrees with the recommendation of the junior officers especially if nothing is marked for review. It is important to note that 'Client Information' is usually marked for review for all applicants and it is nothing to worry about. An ADR (Additional Document Request) is issued to the applicant if further verification is required. As this stage the file transferred to a certain office(like Ottawa, Sydney, Calgary, or regional offices like New Delhi, Accra, etc.) for final decision.
Now this is where it gets tricky. One would assume that meeting eligibility should mean that the application is almost finalized and the PPR should be triggered within a few days. However, this is exactly where we enter the blackbox. Senior officers are obviously fewer than junior officers,and they have to obviously do a more in-depth analysis of the documents before issuing the PPR. Many applicants receive their PR a few days after RPRF as their files are picked up by the senior officer quickly or they wait like you and I for months waiting for the officer to look at the file. None of us have any clue about how the files are prioritized, it could based on NOC, score, no. of applicants, ease of verification, country of residence, etc. Nobody has any idea about this. Writing to IRCC and inquiring about the status yields standard answers that do not provide much information. So this is where one waits to be heard.
It is important to note that meeting eligibility does not mean that the senior officer will always agree with the junior officer's recommendation. He will agree in most cases, but may ask for more information if he is not satisfied. He may even overrule the junior officer negative recommendation (if any) and give a positive recommendation. But, in essence, meeting eligibility is a positive development.
In short, you, I and many others are in IP1 (i.e. background check not started) since December 2018 and are waiting for a final decision.
Best of luck!
