Some folks are asking why some applicants get processed faster and why some local offices are much faster at processing. See below from the CIC website (this also applies to citizenship grants):
Why are there differences in processing times among regions and offices?
Visa offices face different challenges operating in different countries and regions, and even in different offices within the same region. Various factors can affect the time it takes to process applications, including:
- the number of applications received;
- the resources at an office;
- the length of time an applicant takes to respond to requests for information;
- the need for medical and security screening; and
- differences in mail service.
Even though I think there might more reasons, but this is a pretty good summary.
Therefore, an October 2017 applicant that lives in Scarborough should not be comparing themselves with another (Oct app) that lives in Yellowknife.
While I understand all Scarborough October applicants should be within the same ballpark in terms of timeline, factors such as "requests for information", "security screening" etc. should also be considered. Having said all that, I think IRCC should do a better job at resourcing local offices based on the same factors they raise.