Forwarded from another thread.
The files which follow the CIO-LVO route go through following stages-
1) Medicals are passed at CIO, this happened around 20-30 days post AOR for June/July applicants. This is mostly the day the file is opened for the first time.
2) Around the 1-2 day your medicals are cleared, your IP1 starts. On this day, a program assistant checks your file for preliminary R10 (documents completeness check) and criminality and forwards it to a senior Agent for final check. The program assistant writes his comments on the file, if all seems fine he will mention "recommended: pass", if there is some doubt he will mention "review required". After this AGENT checks the file again and passes R10 and criminality for good. For files stuck in long IP1s a review required could be cause of delay.
3) Background check changes back to NA (NA2)- After the agent passes R10 and criminality, the BGC changes from IP1 to "not applicable" (NA2).
This might happen on the same day within an hour or might take few days, depending on case by case basis. So basically the medical pass, R10 pass and criminality pass are all done in a matter of 2-3 days if all is fine with the file.
4) After this the file is put on hold for around 30-40 days at CIO. (NA2 phase).
5) After 30-40 days in NA2, the file is opened again to check eligibility at CIO Sydney. The AGENT checks all the criteria for eligibility, FSW, CRS, Education, IELTS, Employment letter etc. If all seems good the Eligibility is Met. This all happens mostly in one day and the very same day file is transferred within seconds to the Local Visa Office, as the file is transferred the eligibility changes from "MET" to "Not started" again. This is the time when we get "not needed" in our additional docs section.
All the above 5 steps take place at CIO, so above are the checks that happen at CIO. So at CIO R10, criminality and primary Eligibility are done.
6) Now to LVO:-
After the file is at LVO, it depends completely on the concerned LVO and Visa Officer as to when they open your file, which might take from 15-100 days from transfer.
After someone opens your file at the LVO, your eligibility is checked again (this is when IP2 starts) (Eligibility is checked twice overall, once primary check at CIO and then again at LVO). Now it depends on the Visa Officer that if he chooses to rely on the CIO AGENT's check and passes eligibility by merely reviewing the old check, or he/she might chose to check the eligibility in detail again. Most Visa Officers go by the recommendation of the CIO AGENT and do this check as a mere formality, but some Visa Officers might do further verifications on Employment etc., or ask for additional docs, in case they find something doubtful or sometimes just random quality checks. So it all depends on the Visa Officer, once satisfied with this, the Visa Officer changes eligibility to "pass". The the Visa Officer checks and finalises the security and approves the file. After approval the file is sent to be issued a PPR.
So basically the eligibility is checked again and all other checks are reviewed and the file is approved at LVO. So its over all final review of the case, how deep a Visa Officer goes in the case to do that is completely his prerogative and his personal view of the case. All this might happen in a few hours, and might even take many days. Sometimes a file is opened and checked for few checks and the again closed, in such cases files keep on hanging until and unless the Visa Officer choses to come back and open it again. Sometimes some files are randomly chosen for security screening, which might delay files for many months. So these two reasons result in very long IP2s. Also some file have "review required" in Eligibility at CIO, those files also might go under serious checks by the Visa Officer, this might also delay a bit. So at LVO mostly, detailed second Eligibility check is done and passed, security is cleared and over all review of file is done and PPR issued.
Hence this is what happens at LVO. Basically guys, as long as your file is in NA, it most likely is gathering dust, no one is even looking at the file. For an ideal case with no complications, it takes maximum 4-5 actual working days per file. This is the actual time that is devoted to a file, rest of the days the file is just lying waiting for an officer to open and check it.
Sorry for the long post, I wanted to include as much detail of the process so that everyone actually knows what happens with our files.
This information is based on information from a number of GCMS Notes and history of previous cases. I claim to be no expert, so if someone has any further info please share or correct.
