Part 1 — Modelling the whole lifecycle on one object

The first decision on any Salesforce build is the data model. For PSK I deliberately kept it small.

One object, twelve stages

Passport_Application__c carries the record from Draft to Delivered through a restricted Status__c picklist:

Draft → Submitted → Payment Pending → Paid → Document Verification
→ Police Verification → Granting → Printing → Dispatch → Delivered
(+ Rejected, Cancelled)

Name & sharing

• Record name is an Auto Number ARN — ARN-{000000}.
• OWD is Private — the object holds personal data.

A draft isn't a different object. It's the same application, earlier.