Most people arrive on visa-free entry, which is generous for many nationalities, and only later ask what comes next. The permit routes are work, study, investment, family, and short-term routes tied to property or business.
The practical order: work out which route your situation actually fits BEFORE you gather documents, because the document list differs by route and apostilles take time in your home country — not here.
Applications go through the Public Service Hall. Processing has a standard track and a faster paid one.
This is the page on the site that changes most often, and it is the one to confirm at the source before you act on it. Corrections are welcome — this guide carries the date it was last checked for exactly that reason.