diff --git a/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/SpringXMLCompletionEngine.java b/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/SpringXMLCompletionEngine.java
index 1e289928a..5ae8e9ac8 100644
--- a/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/SpringXMLCompletionEngine.java
+++ b/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/SpringXMLCompletionEngine.java
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@ import org.springframework.ide.vscode.boot.xml.completions.TypeCompletionProposa
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.languageserver.completion.ICompletionEngine;
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.languageserver.completion.ICompletionProposal;
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.languageserver.java.JavaProjectFinder;
+import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.languageserver.util.SimpleTextDocumentService;
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.util.text.TextDocument;
 
 /**
@@ -48,10 +49,10 @@ public class SpringXMLCompletionEngine implements ICompletionEngine {
 	private final Map<XMLCompletionProviderKey, XMLCompletionProvider> completionProviders;
 
 	public SpringXMLCompletionEngine(SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents springXMLLanguageServerComponents,
-			JavaProjectFinder projectFinder, SpringSymbolIndex symbolIndex) {
+			JavaProjectFinder projectFinder, SpringSymbolIndex symbolIndex, SimpleTextDocumentService simpleTextDocumentService) {
 
 		this.completionProviders = new HashMap<>();
-		this.completionProviders.put(new XMLCompletionProviderKey(BEANS_NAMESPACE, null, BEAN_ELEMENT, CLASS_ATTRIBUTE), new TypeCompletionProposalProvider(projectFinder, true));
+		this.completionProviders.put(new XMLCompletionProviderKey(BEANS_NAMESPACE, null, BEAN_ELEMENT, CLASS_ATTRIBUTE), new TypeCompletionProposalProvider(projectFinder, simpleTextDocumentService, true));
 		this.completionProviders.put(new XMLCompletionProviderKey(BEANS_NAMESPACE, BEAN_ELEMENT, PROPERTY_ELEMENT, NAME_ATTRIBUTE), new PropertyNameCompletionProposalProvider(projectFinder));
 		this.completionProviders.put(new XMLCompletionProviderKey(BEANS_NAMESPACE, BEAN_ELEMENT, PROPERTY_ELEMENT, REF_ATTRIBUTE), new BeanRefCompletionProposalProvider(projectFinder, symbolIndex));
 	}
diff --git a/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents.java b/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents.java
index e7850f88b..ce9d8767c 100644
--- a/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents.java
+++ b/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents.java
@@ -38,6 +38,7 @@ public class SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents implements LanguageServerComponen
 	private final BootLanguageServerParams serverParams;
 	private final JavaProjectFinder projectFinder;
 	private final SpringSymbolIndex symbolIndex;
+	private final SpringXMLCompletionEngine completionEngine;
 
 	public SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents(
 			SimpleLanguageServer server,
@@ -51,6 +52,8 @@ public class SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents implements LanguageServerComponen
 
 		server.doOnInitialized(this::initialized);
 		server.onShutdown(this::shutdown);
+
+		this.completionEngine = new SpringXMLCompletionEngine(this, projectFinder, symbolIndex, server.getTextDocumentService());
 	}
 
 	@Override
@@ -60,7 +63,7 @@ public class SpringXMLLanguageServerComponents implements LanguageServerComponen
 
 	@Override
 	public ICompletionEngine getCompletionEngine() {
-		return new SpringXMLCompletionEngine(this, projectFinder, symbolIndex);
+		return this.completionEngine;
 	}
 
 	@Override
diff --git a/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/completions/TypeCompletionProposalProvider.java b/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/completions/TypeCompletionProposalProvider.java
index 632f5c0e1..c2d82c652 100644
--- a/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/completions/TypeCompletionProposalProvider.java
+++ b/headless-services/spring-boot-language-server/src/main/java/org/springframework/ide/vscode/boot/xml/completions/TypeCompletionProposalProvider.java
@@ -12,7 +12,9 @@ package org.springframework.ide.vscode.boot.xml.completions;
 
 import java.util.Collection;
 import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.Optional;
+import java.util.Set;
 
 import org.eclipse.lsp4j.CompletionItemKind;
 import org.eclipse.lsp4xml.dom.DOMAttr;
@@ -24,6 +26,7 @@ import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.java.IType;
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.languageserver.completion.DocumentEdits;
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.languageserver.completion.ICompletionProposal;
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.languageserver.java.JavaProjectFinder;
+import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.languageserver.util.SimpleTextDocumentService;
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.util.Renderable;
 import org.springframework.ide.vscode.commons.util.text.TextDocument;
 
@@ -37,10 +40,15 @@ public class TypeCompletionProposalProvider implements XMLCompletionProvider {
 
 	private final JavaProjectFinder projectFinder;
 	private final boolean classesOnly;
+	private final Set<String> typeSearchAlreadyInitializedProjects = Collections.synchronizedSet(new HashSet<>());
 
-	public TypeCompletionProposalProvider(JavaProjectFinder projectFinder, boolean classesOnly) {
+	public TypeCompletionProposalProvider(JavaProjectFinder projectFinder, SimpleTextDocumentService simpleTextDocumentService, boolean classesOnly) {
 		this.projectFinder = projectFinder;
 		this.classesOnly = classesOnly;
+
+		simpleTextDocumentService.onDidOpen(doc -> {
+			initializeTypeSearch(doc);
+		});
 	}
 
 	@Override
@@ -107,4 +115,22 @@ public class TypeCompletionProposalProvider implements XMLCompletionProvider {
 		return new TypeCompletionProposal(label, kind, edits, type.getFullyQualifiedName(), renderable, t.getT2());
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * trigger initial type search as soon as the doc opens to avoid search timeouts when doing type proposals for the first time
+	 */
+	private void initializeTypeSearch(TextDocument doc) {
+		Optional<IJavaProject> foundProject = this.projectFinder.find(doc.getId());
+		if (foundProject.isPresent()) {
+			IJavaProject project = foundProject.get();
+			String projectName = project.getElementName();
+
+			if (!this.typeSearchAlreadyInitializedProjects.contains(projectName)) {
+
+				this.typeSearchAlreadyInitializedProjects.add(projectName);
+				Flux<Tuple2<IType, Double>> types = project.getIndex().camelcaseSearchTypes("", true, true);
+				types.count();
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
 }