diff --git a/frontend/e2e/person-typeahead.spec.ts b/frontend/e2e/person-typeahead.spec.ts
index 3d472431..17baed2c 100644
--- a/frontend/e2e/person-typeahead.spec.ts
+++ b/frontend/e2e/person-typeahead.spec.ts
@@ -7,17 +7,15 @@
  * The tests run at both desktop (1280×720) and tablet (768×1024) viewports
  * as required by the acceptance criteria.
  */
-import { test, expect } from '@playwright/test';
+import { test, expect, type Page } from '@playwright/test';
 
 /**
  * Find a document edit URL to use as the test page.
  * Falls back to /documents/new if no existing document is found.
  */
-async function getDocumentEditUrl(
-	page: Parameters<typeof test>[1] extends (args: { page: infer P }) => unknown ? P : never
-): Promise<string> {
+async function getDocumentEditUrl(page: Page): Promise<string> {
 	await page.goto('/');
-	await page.waitForSelector('[data-hydrated]');
+	await page.waitForLoadState('networkidle');
 	const firstDocLink = page.locator('a[href^="/documents/"]').first();
 	const href = await firstDocLink.getAttribute('href').catch(() => null);
 	if (href) {
@@ -26,6 +24,11 @@ async function getDocumentEditUrl(
 	return '/documents/new';
 }
 
+/** Wait for the listbox to become visible after triggering a search. */
+async function waitForListbox(page: Page): Promise<void> {
+	await page.waitForSelector('[role="listbox"]', { state: 'visible', timeout: 2000 });
+}
+
 test.describe('PersonTypeahead — dropdown visibility (desktop)', () => {
 	test.use({ viewport: { width: 1280, height: 720 } });
 
@@ -42,23 +45,20 @@ test.describe('PersonTypeahead — dropdown visibility (desktop)', () => {
 		await senderInput.click();
 		await senderInput.fill('a');
 
-		// Wait for the dropdown to appear
-		await page.waitForTimeout(400); // debounce is 300ms
+		// Wait for the dropdown to appear (handles debounce automatically)
+		await waitForListbox(page);
 
-		// If there are results, verify the first item is visible (not occluded)
 		const dropdown = page.locator('[role="listbox"]').first();
-		const hasResults = await dropdown.count().then((n) => n > 0);
+		await expect(dropdown).toBeVisible();
 
-		if (hasResults) {
-			const firstOption = dropdown.locator('[role="option"]').first();
-			await expect(firstOption).toBeVisible();
+		const firstOption = dropdown.locator('[role="option"]').first();
+		await expect(firstOption).toBeVisible();
 
-			// Verify the bounding box is within the viewport (not clipped)
-			const box = await firstOption.boundingBox();
-			expect(box).not.toBeNull();
-			expect(box!.y).toBeGreaterThan(0);
-			expect(box!.y + box!.height).toBeLessThan(720);
-		}
+		// Verify the bounding box is within the viewport (not clipped)
+		const box = await firstOption.boundingBox();
+		expect(box).not.toBeNull();
+		expect(box!.y).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+		expect(box!.y + box!.height).toBeLessThan(720);
 
 		await page.screenshot({ path: 'test-results/e2e/person-typeahead-dropdown-desktop.png' });
 	});
@@ -78,18 +78,16 @@ test.describe('PersonTypeahead — dropdown visibility (desktop)', () => {
 
 		await senderInput.click();
 		await senderInput.fill('a');
-		await page.waitForTimeout(400);
+		await waitForListbox(page);
 
 		const dropdown = page.locator('[role="listbox"]').first();
-		const hasDropdown = (await dropdown.count()) > 0;
+		await expect(dropdown).toBeVisible();
 
-		if (hasDropdown) {
-			const dropdownBox = await dropdown.boundingBox();
-			expect(dropdownBox).not.toBeNull();
+		const dropdownBox = await dropdown.boundingBox();
+		expect(dropdownBox).not.toBeNull();
 
-			// Dropdown must appear below the input, not on top or clipped behind it
-			expect(dropdownBox!.y).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(inputBox!.y + inputBox!.height - 5);
-		}
+		// Dropdown must appear below the input, not on top or clipped behind it
+		expect(dropdownBox!.y).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(inputBox!.y + inputBox!.height - 5);
 
 		await page.screenshot({ path: 'test-results/e2e/person-typeahead-dropdown-position.png' });
 	});
@@ -108,20 +106,18 @@ test.describe('PersonTypeahead — dropdown visibility (tablet)', () => {
 
 		await senderInput.click();
 		await senderInput.fill('a');
-		await page.waitForTimeout(400);
+		await waitForListbox(page);
 
 		const dropdown = page.locator('[role="listbox"]').first();
-		const hasResults = (await dropdown.count()) > 0;
+		await expect(dropdown).toBeVisible();
 
-		if (hasResults) {
-			const firstOption = dropdown.locator('[role="option"]').first();
-			await expect(firstOption).toBeVisible();
+		const firstOption = dropdown.locator('[role="option"]').first();
+		await expect(firstOption).toBeVisible();
 
-			const box = await firstOption.boundingBox();
-			expect(box).not.toBeNull();
-			expect(box!.y).toBeGreaterThan(0);
-			expect(box!.y + box!.height).toBeLessThan(1024);
-		}
+		const box = await firstOption.boundingBox();
+		expect(box).not.toBeNull();
+		expect(box!.y).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+		expect(box!.y + box!.height).toBeLessThan(1024);
 
 		await page.screenshot({ path: 'test-results/e2e/person-typeahead-dropdown-tablet.png' });
 	});
@@ -138,19 +134,14 @@ test.describe('PersonTypeahead — keyboard navigation', () => {
 		const senderInput = page.locator('#senderId-search');
 		await senderInput.click();
 		await senderInput.fill('a');
-		await page.waitForTimeout(400);
+		await waitForListbox(page);
 
-		const dropdown = page.locator('[role="listbox"]').first();
-		const hasDropdown = (await dropdown.count()) > 0;
+		await senderInput.press('ArrowDown');
+		// First option should now be the active descendant
+		const activeDescendant = await senderInput.getAttribute('aria-activedescendant');
+		expect(activeDescendant).toBeTruthy();
 
-		if (hasDropdown) {
-			await senderInput.press('ArrowDown');
-			// First option should now be the active descendant
-			const activeDescendant = await senderInput.getAttribute('aria-activedescendant');
-			expect(activeDescendant).toBeTruthy();
-
-			await page.screenshot({ path: 'test-results/e2e/person-typeahead-keyboard-nav.png' });
-		}
+		await page.screenshot({ path: 'test-results/e2e/person-typeahead-keyboard-nav.png' });
 	});
 
 	test('Escape key closes the dropdown', async ({ page }) => {
@@ -161,17 +152,12 @@ test.describe('PersonTypeahead — keyboard navigation', () => {
 		const senderInput = page.locator('#senderId-search');
 		await senderInput.click();
 		await senderInput.fill('a');
-		await page.waitForTimeout(400);
+		await waitForListbox(page);
 
 		const dropdown = page.locator('[role="listbox"]').first();
-		const hasDropdown = (await dropdown.count()) > 0;
-
-		if (hasDropdown) {
-			await expect(dropdown).toBeVisible();
-			await senderInput.press('Escape');
-			await page.waitForTimeout(100);
-			await expect(dropdown).not.toBeVisible();
-		}
+		await expect(dropdown).toBeVisible();
+		await senderInput.press('Escape');
+		await expect(dropdown).not.toBeVisible();
 	});
 
 	test('aria-expanded is true when dropdown is open', async ({ page }) => {
@@ -187,15 +173,10 @@ test.describe('PersonTypeahead — keyboard navigation', () => {
 
 		await senderInput.click();
 		await senderInput.fill('a');
-		await page.waitForTimeout(400);
+		await waitForListbox(page);
 
-		const dropdown = page.locator('[role="listbox"]').first();
-		const hasDropdown = (await dropdown.count()) > 0;
-
-		if (hasDropdown) {
-			const expanded = await senderInput.getAttribute('aria-expanded');
-			expect(expanded).toBe('true');
-		}
+		const expanded = await senderInput.getAttribute('aria-expanded');
+		expect(expanded).toBe('true');
 	});
 });
 
@@ -210,17 +191,12 @@ test.describe('PersonTypeahead — click-outside dismiss (fixed position)', () =
 		const senderInput = page.locator('#senderId-search');
 		await senderInput.click();
 		await senderInput.fill('a');
-		await page.waitForTimeout(400);
+		await waitForListbox(page);
 
 		const dropdown = page.locator('[role="listbox"]').first();
-		const hasDropdown = (await dropdown.count()) > 0;
-
-		if (hasDropdown) {
-			await expect(dropdown).toBeVisible();
-			// Click somewhere else on the page
-			await page.click('body', { position: { x: 10, y: 10 } });
-			await page.waitForTimeout(100);
-			await expect(dropdown).not.toBeVisible();
-		}
+		await expect(dropdown).toBeVisible();
+		// Click somewhere else on the page
+		await page.click('body', { position: { x: 10, y: 10 } });
+		await expect(dropdown).not.toBeVisible();
 	});
 });