diff --git a/apps/portal/src/app/features/licensing/components/ConfigDrivenSection.tsx b/apps/portal/src/app/features/licensing/components/ConfigDrivenSection.tsx
index 15c658b79..52e3cebc5 100644
--- a/apps/portal/src/app/features/licensing/components/ConfigDrivenSection.tsx
+++ b/apps/portal/src/app/features/licensing/components/ConfigDrivenSection.tsx
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ import {
   type FormSectionConfig,
   type Vessel,
 } from '@ema-platform/api';
-import { AmharicDatePicker, CountrySelect } from '@ema-platform/ui';
+import { AmharicDatePicker, CountrySelect, PhoneInput } from '@ema-platform/ui';
 import { useTranslation } from 'react-i18next';
 import { LocationPicker } from '../../location/components/LocationPicker';
 
@@ -223,6 +223,12 @@ export function ConfigDrivenSection({
                 value={(value as string) ?? ''}
                 onChange={(v) => onChange(field.key, v)}
               />
+            ) : field.type === 'PHONE' ? (
+              <PhoneInput
+                {...common}
+                value={(value as string) ?? ''}
+                onChange={(v) => onChange(field.key, v)}
+              />
             ) : field.type === 'TEXTAREA' ? (
               <Textarea
                 {...common}
diff --git a/apps/portal/src/app/features/profile/components/AddressFormContent.tsx b/apps/portal/src/app/features/profile/components/AddressFormContent.tsx
index d691004ce..46d73dd4e 100644
--- a/apps/portal/src/app/features/profile/components/AddressFormContent.tsx
+++ b/apps/portal/src/app/features/profile/components/AddressFormContent.tsx
@@ -147,12 +147,13 @@ export function AddressFormContent({
           onChange={(val) => setValue('nationality', val || '', { shouldValidate: true })}
           error={errors.nationality?.message}
         />
-        <TextInput
+        <PhoneInput
           label={t('profileFields.primaryPhoneNumber')}
           description={t('profileAddress.accountManagedHint')}
           required
           readOnly
-          {...register('primaryPhoneNumber')}
+          value={watch('primaryPhoneNumber') || ''}
+          onChange={(val) => setValue('primaryPhoneNumber', val, { shouldValidate: true })}
           error={errors.primaryPhoneNumber?.message}
         />
         <PhoneInput
diff --git a/libs/ui/src/lib/input/PhoneInput.tsx b/libs/ui/src/lib/input/PhoneInput.tsx
index 171f61c4f..fd0951221 100644
--- a/libs/ui/src/lib/input/PhoneInput.tsx
+++ b/libs/ui/src/lib/input/PhoneInput.tsx
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { useEffect, useMemo, useState } from 'react';
+import { useEffect, useMemo, useRef, useState } from 'react';
 import { useTranslation } from 'react-i18next';
 import { Group, Select, Text, TextInput, type ComboboxItem, type SelectProps } from '@mantine/core';
 import {
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import {
   type CountryCode,
 } from 'libphonenumber-js';
 import { CountryFlag, getCountryName, resolveLang } from './CountrySelect';
+import { nextNationalDigits, toE164, toNationalDigits } from './phone';
 
 // Static list, computed once at module load — same as CountrySelect's dataset.
 const COUNTRY_CODES = getCountries();
@@ -50,6 +51,8 @@ export interface PhoneInputProps {
   description?: React.ReactNode;
   error?: React.ReactNode;
   required?: boolean;
+  /** Mantine's asterisk-without-`required` variant, as used by config-driven forms. */
+  withAsterisk?: boolean;
   disabled?: boolean;
   readOnly?: boolean;
 }
@@ -57,7 +60,11 @@ export interface PhoneInputProps {
 /**
  * International phone entry: a searchable country/dial-code select beside a
  * national-number text box, WhatsApp/Telegram style. Controlled —
- * `value`/`onChange` carry the E.164 string; everything else is display.
+ * `value`/`onChange` carry the E.164 string.
+ *
+ * The typed digits live in local state rather than being re-derived from
+ * `value` on every render: an incomplete number doesn't parse, so deriving
+ * would blank the box between keystrokes.
  */
 export function PhoneInput({
   value,
@@ -67,21 +74,33 @@ export function PhoneInput({
   description,
   error,
   required,
+  withAsterisk,
   disabled,
   readOnly,
 }: PhoneInputProps) {
   const { t, i18n } = useTranslation();
   const lang = resolveLang(i18n.language);
 
-  // The picked country. Re-derived from `value` when it carries a
-  // recognizable dial code (e.g. the form was reset from outside); otherwise
-  // left alone so picking a country before typing digits isn't clobbered.
-  const [country, setCountry] = useState<CountryCode>(
-    () => parsePhoneNumberFromString(value || '')?.country ?? 'ET',
+  const initialCountry = parsePhoneNumberFromString(value || '')?.country ?? 'ET';
+  const [country, setCountry] = useState<CountryCode>(initialCountry);
+  const [national, setNational] = useState(() =>
+    new AsYouType(initialCountry).input(toNationalDigits(value, initialCountry)),
   );
+
+  // What this field last pushed upward, so an echo of our own value isn't
+  // mistaken for the parent resetting the form.
+  const emitted = useRef(value);
+
   useEffect(() => {
-    const parsed = value ? parsePhoneNumberFromString(value)?.country : undefined;
-    if (parsed) setCountry(parsed);
+    if (value === emitted.current) return;
+    const parsedCountry = parsePhoneNumberFromString(value || '')?.country;
+    const next = parsedCountry ?? country;
+    if (parsedCountry) setCountry(parsedCountry);
+    setNational(new AsYouType(next).input(toNationalDigits(value, next)));
+    emitted.current = value;
+    // Adopting an outside change only — `country` is state written here, so
+    // re-running on it would fight the user's typing.
+    // eslint-disable-next-line react-hooks/exhaustive-deps
   }, [value]);
 
   const countryOptions = useMemo<CountryOption[]>(
@@ -94,45 +113,38 @@ export function PhoneInput({
     [lang],
   );
 
-  // Digits currently typed, formatted for display under the selected
-  // country's convention.
-  const national = useMemo(() => {
-    const digits = value.startsWith('+')
-      ? (parsePhoneNumberFromString(value)?.nationalNumber ?? '')
-      : value;
-    return new AsYouType(country).input(digits);
-  }, [value, country]);
+  function push(next: string) {
+    emitted.current = next;
+    onChange(next);
+  }
 
-  function emit(text: string, forCountry: CountryCode) {
+  function applyDigits(digits: string, forCountry: CountryCode) {
+    setNational(new AsYouType(forCountry).input(digits));
+    push(toE164(digits, forCountry));
+  }
+
+  function handleText(text: string) {
+    // A full `+<code><number>` arriving at once (paste, autofill, or a test
+    // driver's `.fill()`) is parsed standalone and switches the country,
+    // rather than being read under whatever country was already selected.
     const trimmed = text.trim();
-    // A full `+<code><number>` landing in the box directly (paste,
-    // autofill, or a test driver's `.fill()`) is parsed standalone and
-    // switches the country, rather than being digit-stripped and read
-    // under whatever country was already selected.
     if (trimmed.startsWith('+')) {
       const parsed = parsePhoneNumberFromString(trimmed);
       if (parsed?.country) {
         setCountry(parsed.country);
-        onChange(parsed.number);
+        setNational(new AsYouType(parsed.country).input(parsed.nationalNumber));
+        push(parsed.number);
         return;
       }
     }
-    const digits = trimmed.replace(/\D/g, '');
-    if (!digits) {
-      onChange('');
-      return;
-    }
-    onChange(
-      parsePhoneNumberFromString(digits, forCountry)?.number ??
-        `+${getCountryCallingCode(forCountry)}${digits}`,
-    );
+    applyDigits(nextNationalDigits(text, national), country);
   }
 
   function handleCountryChange(next: string | null) {
     if (!next) return;
     const code = next as CountryCode;
     setCountry(code);
-    emit(national, code);
+    applyDigits(national.replace(/\D/g, ''), code);
   }
 
   return (
@@ -144,11 +156,12 @@ export function PhoneInput({
       description={description}
       error={error}
       required={required}
+      withAsterisk={withAsterisk}
       disabled={disabled}
       readOnly={readOnly}
       placeholder={placeholder}
       value={national}
-      onChange={(e) => emit(e.currentTarget.value, country)}
+      onChange={(e) => handleText(e.currentTarget.value)}
       leftSectionWidth={92}
       leftSectionPointerEvents={disabled || readOnly ? 'none' : 'all'}
       leftSection={
diff --git a/libs/ui/src/lib/input/phone.spec.ts b/libs/ui/src/lib/input/phone.spec.ts
index b1b589102..6cbf30ff5 100644
--- a/libs/ui/src/lib/input/phone.spec.ts
+++ b/libs/ui/src/lib/input/phone.spec.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
-import { optionalPhoneNumber, phoneNumber } from './phone';
+import { nextNationalDigits, optionalPhoneNumber, phoneNumber, toE164, toNationalDigits } from './phone';
+import { AsYouType } from 'libphonenumber-js';
 
 describe('phoneNumber', () => {
   it('normalizes a legacy Ethiopian national number to E.164', () => {
@@ -32,3 +33,39 @@ describe('optionalPhoneNumber', () => {
     expect(() => optionalPhoneNumber.parse('abc')).toThrow();
   });
 });
+
+describe('typing helpers', () => {
+  // Regression: an incomplete number doesn't parse, and an earlier version
+  // collapsed it to '' — the box emptied on every keystroke.
+  it('keeps partial digits as the number is typed one character at a time', () => {
+    let display = '';
+    let value = '';
+    for (const ch of '911223344') {
+      const digits = nextNationalDigits(display + ch, display);
+      display = new AsYouType('ET').input(digits);
+      value = toE164(digits, 'ET');
+    }
+    expect(display).toBe('911223344');
+    expect(value).toBe('+251911223344');
+  });
+
+  it('drops a digit when a keystroke only removed a formatting character', () => {
+    // "(415)" backspaced to "(415" leaves the digits unchanged.
+    expect(nextNationalDigits('(415', '(415)')).toBe('41');
+  });
+
+  it('keeps the deleted digit count when a real digit is removed', () => {
+    expect(nextNationalDigits('91122334', '911223344')).toBe('91122334');
+  });
+
+  it('reads the national part back out of a stored E.164 value', () => {
+    expect(toNationalDigits('+251911223344', 'ET')).toBe('911223344');
+    expect(toNationalDigits('+14155552671', 'US')).toBe('4155552671');
+    expect(toNationalDigits('', 'ET')).toBe('');
+  });
+
+  it('falls back to a dial-code concatenation while the number is incomplete', () => {
+    expect(toE164('9', 'ET')).toBe('+2519');
+    expect(toE164('', 'ET')).toBe('');
+  });
+});
diff --git a/libs/ui/src/lib/input/phone.ts b/libs/ui/src/lib/input/phone.ts
index 53efd0238..a7b877dbc 100644
--- a/libs/ui/src/lib/input/phone.ts
+++ b/libs/ui/src/lib/input/phone.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { z } from 'zod';
-import { isValidPhoneNumber, parsePhoneNumberFromString } from 'libphonenumber-js';
+import { getCountryCallingCode, isValidPhoneNumber, parsePhoneNumberFromString, type CountryCode } from 'libphonenumber-js';
 
 /**
  * Accepts any international number in E.164 (`+<country><number>`) or a
@@ -16,3 +16,41 @@ export const phoneNumber = z
 
 /** Same rules, but blank is allowed. */
 export const optionalPhoneNumber = z.union([z.literal(''), phoneNumber]).optional();
+
+/**
+ * Digits the field should hold after an edit. A keystroke that only removed
+ * a formatting character (backspacing the ')' out of "(415)") leaves the
+ * digits unchanged, which would otherwise make the caret stick — drop a real
+ * digit in that case.
+ */
+export function nextNationalDigits(text: string, prevDisplay: string): string {
+  const digits = text.replace(/\D/g, '');
+  const deleting = text.length < prevDisplay.length;
+  if (deleting && digits === prevDisplay.replace(/\D/g, '')) return digits.slice(0, -1);
+  return digits;
+}
+
+/** National digits of a stored value, for display in the number box. */
+export function toNationalDigits(value: string, country: CountryCode): string {
+  if (!value) return '';
+  const parsed = parsePhoneNumberFromString(value);
+  if (parsed) return parsed.nationalNumber;
+  if (value.startsWith('+')) {
+    const prefix = `+${getCountryCallingCode(country)}`;
+    if (value.startsWith(prefix)) return value.slice(prefix.length).replace(/\D/g, '');
+  }
+  return value.replace(/\D/g, '');
+}
+
+/**
+ * E.164 for the digits typed so far. Incomplete numbers don't parse, so they
+ * fall back to a plain dial-code concatenation rather than collapsing to ''
+ * — the value has to survive mid-typing for the field to be usable.
+ */
+export function toE164(digits: string, country: CountryCode): string {
+  if (!digits) return '';
+  return (
+    parsePhoneNumberFromString(digits, country)?.number ??
+    `+${getCountryCallingCode(country)}${digits}`
+  );
+}