diff --git a/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouter.tsx b/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouter.tsx
index da7998a265e9..2e9a02912c2b 100644
--- a/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouter.tsx
+++ b/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouter.tsx
@@ -1,12 +1,13 @@
 import {useNavigationState} from '@react-navigation/native';
 import debounce from 'lodash/debounce';
-import React, {useCallback, useMemo, useState} from 'react';
+import React, {useCallback, useMemo, useRef, useState} from 'react';
 import {View} from 'react-native';
 import {useOnyx} from 'react-native-onyx';
 import FocusTrapForModal from '@components/FocusTrap/FocusTrapForModal';
 import Modal from '@components/Modal';
 import {useOptionsList} from '@components/OptionListContextProvider';
 import type {SearchQueryJSON} from '@components/Search/types';
+import type {SelectionListHandle} from '@components/SelectionList/types';
 import useKeyboardShortcut from '@hooks/useKeyboardShortcut';
 import useResponsiveLayout from '@hooks/useResponsiveLayout';
 import useThemeStyles from '@hooks/useThemeStyles';
@@ -30,6 +31,7 @@ function SearchRouter() {
 
     const {isSmallScreenWidth} = useResponsiveLayout();
     const {isSearchRouterDisplayed, closeSearchRouter} = useSearchRouterContext();
+    const listRef = useRef<SelectionListHandle>(null);
 
     const [textInputValue, setTextInputValue] = useState('');
     const [userSearchQuery, setUserSearchQuery] = useState<SearchQueryJSON | undefined>(undefined);
@@ -66,7 +68,7 @@ function SearchRouter() {
             clearUserQuery();
             return;
         }
-
+        listRef.current?.updateAndScrollToFocusedIndex(0);
         const queryJSON = SearchUtils.buildSearchQueryJSON(userQuery);
 
         if (queryJSON) {
@@ -127,8 +129,8 @@ function SearchRouter() {
                         onSubmit={() => {
                             onSearchSubmit(userSearchQuery);
                         }}
+                        routerListRef={listRef}
                     />
-
                     <SearchRouterList
                         currentQuery={userSearchQuery}
                         reportForContextualSearch={contextualReportData}
@@ -137,6 +139,7 @@ function SearchRouter() {
                         onSearchSubmit={onSearchSubmit}
                         updateUserSearchQuery={updateUserSearchQuery}
                         closeAndClearRouter={closeAndClearRouter}
+                        ref={listRef}
                     />
                 </View>
             </FocusTrapForModal>
diff --git a/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouterInput.tsx b/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouterInput.tsx
index ee5924002a06..6ad5d4df0ba7 100644
--- a/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouterInput.tsx
+++ b/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouterInput.tsx
@@ -1,4 +1,6 @@
 import React from 'react';
+import type {RefObject} from 'react';
+import type {SelectionListHandle} from '@components/SelectionList/types';
 import BaseTextInput from '@components/TextInput/BaseTextInput';
 import useThemeStyles from '@hooks/useThemeStyles';
 import CONST from '@src/CONST';
@@ -8,9 +10,10 @@ type SearchRouterInputProps = {
     setValue: (searchTerm: string) => void;
     updateSearch: (searchTerm: string) => void;
     onSubmit: () => void;
+    routerListRef: RefObject<SelectionListHandle>;
 };
 
-function SearchRouterInput({value, setValue, updateSearch, onSubmit}: SearchRouterInputProps) {
+function SearchRouterInput({value, setValue, updateSearch, onSubmit, routerListRef}: SearchRouterInputProps) {
     const styles = useThemeStyles();
 
     const onChangeText = (text: string) => {
@@ -28,6 +31,12 @@ function SearchRouterInput({value, setValue, updateSearch, onSubmit}: SearchRout
             inputStyle={[styles.searchInputStyle, styles.searchRouterInputStyle, styles.ph2]}
             role={CONST.ROLE.PRESENTATION}
             autoCapitalize="none"
+            onFocus={() => {
+                routerListRef?.current?.updateExternalTextInputFocus(true);
+            }}
+            onBlur={() => {
+                routerListRef?.current?.updateExternalTextInputFocus(false);
+            }}
         />
     );
 }
diff --git a/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouterList.tsx b/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouterList.tsx
index b8a01a92d349..4550829d3476 100644
--- a/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouterList.tsx
+++ b/src/components/Search/SearchRouter/SearchRouterList.tsx
@@ -1,10 +1,11 @@
-import React, {useCallback} from 'react';
+import React, {forwardRef, useCallback} from 'react';
+import type {ForwardedRef} from 'react';
 import * as Expensicons from '@components/Icon/Expensicons';
 import type {SearchQueryJSON, SearchRouterListItem} from '@components/Search/types';
 import SelectionList from '@components/SelectionList';
 import SingleIconListItem from '@components/SelectionList/Search/SingleIconListItem';
 import type {ListItemWithSingleIcon, SingleIconListItemProps} from '@components/SelectionList/Search/SingleIconListItem';
-import type {SectionListDataType, UserListItemProps} from '@components/SelectionList/types';
+import type {SectionListDataType, SelectionListHandle, UserListItemProps} from '@components/SelectionList/types';
 import UserListItem from '@components/SelectionList/UserListItem';
 import useLocalize from '@hooks/useLocalize';
 import useThemeStyles from '@hooks/useThemeStyles';
@@ -44,7 +45,10 @@ function SearchRouterItem(props: UserListItemProps<SearchRouterListItem> | Singl
     return <SingleIconListItem {...(props as SingleIconListItemProps<ListItemWithSingleIcon & ItemWithQuery>)} />;
 }
 
-function SearchRouterList({currentQuery, reportForContextualSearch, recentSearches, recentReports, onSearchSubmit, updateUserSearchQuery, closeAndClearRouter}: SearchRouterListProps) {
+function SearchRouterList(
+    {currentQuery, reportForContextualSearch, recentSearches, recentReports, onSearchSubmit, updateUserSearchQuery, closeAndClearRouter}: SearchRouterListProps,
+    ref: ForwardedRef<SelectionListHandle>,
+) {
     const styles = useThemeStyles();
     const {translate} = useLocalize();
     const sections: Array<SectionListDataType<SearchRouterListItem>> = [];
@@ -96,7 +100,7 @@ function SearchRouterList({currentQuery, reportForContextualSearch, recentSearch
 
     const onSelectRow = useCallback(
         (item: SearchRouterListItem) => {
-            // eslint-disable-next-line default-case
+            // eslint-disable-next-line default-case, @typescript-eslint/switch-exhaustiveness-check
             switch (item.itemType) {
                 case CONST.SEARCH.ROUTER_LIST_ITEM_TYPE.SEARCH:
                     // Handle selection of "Recent search"
@@ -131,10 +135,11 @@ function SearchRouterList({currentQuery, reportForContextualSearch, recentSearch
             onSelectRow={onSelectRow}
             ListItem={SearchRouterItem}
             containerStyle={styles.mh100}
+            ref={ref}
         />
     );
 }
 
-export default SearchRouterList;
+export default forwardRef(SearchRouterList);
 export {SearchRouterItem};
 export type {ItemWithQuery};
diff --git a/src/components/SelectionList/BaseSelectionList.tsx b/src/components/SelectionList/BaseSelectionList.tsx
index 197c64b99a26..fb594d2f1d6b 100644
--- a/src/components/SelectionList/BaseSelectionList.tsx
+++ b/src/components/SelectionList/BaseSelectionList.tsx
@@ -617,7 +617,21 @@ function BaseSelectionList<TItem extends ListItem>(
         [flattenedSections.allOptions, setFocusedIndex, updateAndScrollToFocusedIndex],
     );
 
-    useImperativeHandle(ref, () => ({scrollAndHighlightItem, clearInputAfterSelect}), [scrollAndHighlightItem, clearInputAfterSelect]);
+    /**
+     * Changes isTextInputFocusedRef value when using external TextInput, to handle shouldSync focus properly
+     *
+     * @param isTextInputFocused - Is external TextInput focused.
+     */
+    const updateExternalTextInputFocus = useCallback((isTextInputFocused: boolean) => {
+        isTextInputFocusedRef.current = isTextInputFocused;
+    }, []);
+
+    useImperativeHandle(ref, () => ({scrollAndHighlightItem, clearInputAfterSelect, updateAndScrollToFocusedIndex, updateExternalTextInputFocus}), [
+        scrollAndHighlightItem,
+        clearInputAfterSelect,
+        updateAndScrollToFocusedIndex,
+        updateExternalTextInputFocus,
+    ]);
 
     /** Selects row when pressing Enter */
     useKeyboardShortcut(CONST.KEYBOARD_SHORTCUTS.ENTER, selectFocusedOption, {
diff --git a/src/components/SelectionList/Search/SingleIconListItem.tsx b/src/components/SelectionList/Search/SingleIconListItem.tsx
index 9aa3274d3686..73f6e0ebd4c6 100644
--- a/src/components/SelectionList/Search/SingleIconListItem.tsx
+++ b/src/components/SelectionList/Search/SingleIconListItem.tsx
@@ -16,9 +16,10 @@ type SingleIconListItemProps<TItem extends ListItemWithSingleIcon> = {
     showTooltip?: boolean;
     onSelectRow: (item: TItem) => void;
     onFocus?: () => void;
+    shouldSyncFocus?: boolean;
 };
 
-function SingleIconListItem<TItem extends ListItemWithSingleIcon>({item, isFocused, showTooltip, onSelectRow, onFocus}: SingleIconListItemProps<TItem>) {
+function SingleIconListItem<TItem extends ListItemWithSingleIcon>({item, isFocused, showTooltip, onSelectRow, onFocus, shouldSyncFocus}: SingleIconListItemProps<TItem>) {
     const styles = useThemeStyles();
     const theme = useTheme();
 
@@ -32,6 +33,7 @@ function SingleIconListItem<TItem extends ListItemWithSingleIcon>({item, isFocus
             keyForList={item.keyForList}
             onFocus={onFocus}
             hoverStyle={item.isSelected && styles.activeComponentBG}
+            shouldSyncFocus={shouldSyncFocus}
         >
             <>
                 {item.singleIcon && (
diff --git a/src/components/SelectionList/types.ts b/src/components/SelectionList/types.ts
index 8c8c33eb2cc9..395e1f27397f 100644
--- a/src/components/SelectionList/types.ts
+++ b/src/components/SelectionList/types.ts
@@ -554,6 +554,8 @@ type BaseSelectionListProps<TItem extends ListItem> = Partial<ChildrenProps> & {
 type SelectionListHandle = {
     scrollAndHighlightItem?: (items: string[], timeout: number) => void;
     clearInputAfterSelect?: () => void;
+    updateAndScrollToFocusedIndex: (newFocusedIndex: number) => void;
+    updateExternalTextInputFocus: (isTextInputFocused: boolean) => void;
 };
 
 type ItemLayout = {