I just got my Ulster one here is the advice I can give you:

1. Go straight to the horses mouth, shake hands with the woman/man at the desk and get to know her on a first name basis. Ask her your questions.

2. Hand deliver your permit for processing and consideration personally to the person listed in suggestion 1.

3. Ask the person face to face what the next step will be after handing in your application.

4. Get ALL of your references, and your notary together at the same time, in the same place to fill out your reference information. Have the all do it together, notarize it, and be done with it. Buy them all a beer (or a soda if you're not drinkers), and hang out and have a good time. This saved me hours when it was suggested to me, and it is the only way to guarantee that this part of the process gets done effectively.