Q: I'm a US citizen. My husband is Australian. We want him to move to the US as soon as possible. IR1, CR1, or K-3?
Which visa would get him living in the US quickest and easiest?
A:
If you file for a spousal visa, you will be issued either an IR1 or CR1 visa depending on how long you and your husband have been married. This isn't a distinction you have to choose between, USCIS will take care of that automatically based on the information you submit.
At the moment, USCIS processing time estimates for either IR1/CR1 visas or a K3 visa are the same. You can apply for both at the same time and if you do there is no additional filing fee associated with the K3 request, but applying for both won't hurt you in any way. If the IR1/CR1 is issued before the K3 is finished processing, the K3 will simply be dropped.
Given that the estimated processing times for both are the same, and this estimate has lined up with reality lately, there's not a lot of benefit to applying for anything but the IR1/CR1.
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