tick all the boxes

Verb

tick all the boxes (third-person singular simple present ticks all the boxes, present participle ticking all the boxes, simple past and past participle ticked all the boxes)

1. (idiomatic) To fulfill all the requirements, especially as itemized in a list; to have all the needed characteristics; to complete all the steps in a process in an orderly manner.
   • As a presidential candidate, Sherzai ticked all the boxes. He is Pashtun; . . . he has the necessary respect . . . ; and he possesses a national reputation.2009 May 6, Aryn Baker, “With a Rival's Withdrawal, Karzai's Path to Re-Election Eased”, in Time
   • But he not only ticks all the boxes mentioned by Mr. Martins — musical responsiveness, use of the ballet vocabulary, a striking sense of spatial architecture — he also shows, in this work, much more.2010 November 7, Alastair Macaulay, “Dance Review: Luminaries and Hopefuls Join to Ensure Choreography’s Future”, in New York Times, retrieved 13 Jun 2013

   Synonyms:

   check all the boxes