diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-core/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/core/ajax/JQueryAjaxBehavior.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-core/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/core/ajax/JQueryAjaxBehavior.java
index 5feac31056..28e1bfb567 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-core/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/core/ajax/JQueryAjaxBehavior.java
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-core/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/core/ajax/JQueryAjaxBehavior.java
@@ -157,7 +157,7 @@ public JQueryAjaxBehavior(IJQueryAjaxAware source)
 	 * Constructor
 	 * 
 	 * @param source {@link Behavior} to which the event - returned by {@link #newEvent()} - will be broadcasted.
-	 * @param duration {@link Duration}. If different than {@link Duration#NONE}, an {@link ThrottlingSettings} will be added with the specified {@link Duration}.
+	 * @param duration {@link Duration}. If different than {@link Duration#ZERO}, an {@link ThrottlingSettings} will be added with the specified {@link Duration}.
 	 */
 	public JQueryAjaxBehavior(IJQueryAjaxAware source, Duration duration)
 	{
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-core/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/core/utils/ListUtils.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-core/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/core/utils/ListUtils.java
index 95d2a728f2..aa58d7a869 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-core/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/core/utils/ListUtils.java
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-core/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/core/utils/ListUtils.java
@@ -313,7 +313,7 @@ public static boolean isEmpty(List<StringValue> list)
 	/**
 	 * Converts a {@link StringValue} to a list of {@code String}
 	 * 
-	 * @param value the {@link StringValue}
+	 * @param values the {@link StringValue}
 	 * @return a list of {@code String}
 	 */
 	public static List<String> toStringList(StringValue values)
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/SiteMapPage.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/SiteMapPage.java
index dbbd3e28bf..112691777f 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/SiteMapPage.java
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/SiteMapPage.java
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.jqueryui.autocomplete.ConverterAutoCompletePage;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.jqueryui.autocomplete.CustomAutoCompletePage;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.jqueryui.autocomplete.DefaultAutoCompletePage;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.jqueryui.autocomplete.IdBasedAutoCompletePage;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.jqueryui.autocomplete.RendererAutoCompletePage;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.jqueryui.autocomplete.TemplateAutoCompletePage;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.jqueryui.button.AjaxButtonPage;
@@ -191,6 +192,7 @@ public class SiteMapPage extends WebPage
 			ContextMenuPage.class,
 			ConverterAutoCompletePage.class,
 			CustomAutoCompletePage.class,
+            IdBasedAutoCompletePage.class,
 			CustomCalendarPage.class,
 			CustomCalendar6Page.class,
 			CustomComboBoxPage.class,
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/AbstractAutoCompletePage.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/AbstractAutoCompletePage.java
index 38ee8c58d3..304d421086 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/AbstractAutoCompletePage.java
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/AbstractAutoCompletePage.java
@@ -20,7 +20,8 @@ protected List<DemoLink> getDemoLinks()
 				new DemoLink(CustomAutoCompletePage.class, "Auto-complete: custom beans"), // lf
 				new DemoLink(TemplateAutoCompletePage.class, "Auto-complete: custom template"), // lf
 				new DemoLink(RendererAutoCompletePage.class, "Auto-complete: custom renderer"), // lf
-				new DemoLink(ConverterAutoCompletePage.class, "Auto-complete: form submit") // lf
+				new DemoLink(ConverterAutoCompletePage.class, "Auto-complete: form submit"), // lf
+				new DemoLink(IdBasedAutoCompletePage.class, "Auto-complete: id based selection") // lf
 		);
 	}
 }
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.css b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.css
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e7323a51d7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.css
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+/* Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License") http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 */
+table {
+	width: 400px;
+	border-spacing: 0;
+	border-collapse: collapse;
+}
+
+th, td {
+	padding: 5px;
+}
+
+.ui-autocomplete {
+	max-height: 200px;
+	overflow-y: auto;
+	overflow-x: hidden;
+	padding-right: 20px;
+}
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.html b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.html
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..fb0542c08f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.html
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+<!DOCTYPE html>
+<!--
+Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License") http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+-->
+<html xmlns:wicket="http://wicket.apache.org">
+<head>
+<wicket:head>
+	<title>Wicket jQuery UI: auto-complete (custom bean)</title>
+</wicket:head>
+</head>
+<body>
+<wicket:extend>
+	<div id="demo-panel">
+		<form wicket:id="form">
+			<table>
+				<tr>
+					<td style="width: 300px; vertical-align: top;">
+						<div>Select a metal genre: (containing any char)</div>
+						<br/>
+						<input wicket:id="autocomplete" type="text" size="30" />
+					</td>
+					<td wicket:id="container" style="width: 100px;">
+						<img wicket:id="cover" class="ui-corner-all" />
+						<div wicket:id="name" style="text-align: center;"></div>
+					</td>
+				</tr>
+			</table>
+		</form>
+	</div>
+</wicket:extend>
+</body>
+</html>
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..bad3f8f8b9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/jqueryui/autocomplete/IdBasedAutoCompletePage.java
@@ -0,0 +1,88 @@
+/*
+Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License") http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ */
+package org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.jqueryui.autocomplete;
+
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.apache.wicket.ajax.AjaxRequestTarget;
+import org.apache.wicket.markup.head.IHeaderResponse;
+import org.apache.wicket.markup.html.WebMarkupContainer;
+import org.apache.wicket.markup.html.basic.Label;
+import org.apache.wicket.markup.html.form.Form;
+import org.apache.wicket.markup.html.image.ContextImage;
+import org.apache.wicket.model.IModel;
+import org.apache.wicket.model.LoadableDetachableModel;
+import org.apache.wicket.model.Model;
+import org.apache.wicket.model.PropertyModel;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.core.resource.StyleSheetPackageHeaderItem;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.core.utils.ListUtils;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete.AbstractAutoCompleteTextField;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete.AutoCompleteTextField;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete.IElementSelectionStrategy;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete.PropertyBasedElementSelectionStrategy;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.data.bean.Genre;
+import org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.samples.data.dao.GenresDAO;
+
+public class IdBasedAutoCompletePage extends AbstractAutoCompletePage
+{
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	public IdBasedAutoCompletePage()
+	{
+		// Model //
+		final IModel<Genre> model = Model.of(GenresDAO.newGenre());
+
+		// Form //
+		final Form<Void> form = new Form<Void>("form");
+		this.add(form);
+
+		// Container for selected genre (name & cover) //
+		final WebMarkupContainer container = new WebMarkupContainer("container");
+		form.add(container.setOutputMarkupId(true));
+
+		container.add(new ContextImage("cover", new PropertyModel<String>(model, "cover")));
+		container.add(new Label("name", new PropertyModel<String>(model, "name")));
+
+		// Auto-complete //
+		form.add(new AbstractAutoCompleteTextField<Genre>("autocomplete", model) {
+
+			private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+            @Override
+            protected IModel<List<Genre>> getChoicesModel(String input)
+            {
+                return new LoadableDetachableModel<>()
+                {
+                    @Override
+                    protected List<Genre> load()
+                    {
+                        return ListUtils.contains(input, GenresDAO.all());
+                    }
+                };
+            }
+
+            @Override
+            protected IElementSelectionStrategy<Genre> newElementSelectionStrategy()
+            {
+                return new PropertyBasedElementSelectionStrategy<>("id");
+            }
+
+            @Override
+			protected void onSelected(AjaxRequestTarget target)
+			{
+				target.add(container); // the model has already been updated
+			}
+		});
+	}
+
+	// Methods //
+
+	@Override
+	public void renderHead(IHeaderResponse response)
+	{
+		super.renderHead(response);
+
+		response.render(new StyleSheetPackageHeaderItem(IdBasedAutoCompletePage.class));
+	}
+}
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/resources/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/SampleApplication.properties b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/resources/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/SampleApplication.properties
index cdc22247c4..14fdae69cf 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/resources/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/SampleApplication.properties
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-samples/src/main/resources/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/samples/SampleApplication.properties
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ AccordionPanelPage.title=AccordionPanel
 # Auto-complete
 DefaultAutoCompletePage.title=Auto-complete
 CustomAutoCompletePage.title=Auto-complete: custom beans
+IdBasedAutoCompletePage.title=Auto-complete: ID based selection
 TemplateAutoCompletePage.title=Auto-complete: custom template
 RendererAutoCompletePage.title=Auto-complete: custom renderer
 ConverterAutoCompletePage.title=Auto-complete: form submit
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AbstractAutoCompleteTextField.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AbstractAutoCompleteTextField.java
index 6b66866bae..d07a9bfe3f 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AbstractAutoCompleteTextField.java
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AbstractAutoCompleteTextField.java
@@ -16,6 +16,7 @@
  */
 package org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete;
 
+import java.util.Collections;
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Locale;
 import org.apache.wicket.ajax.AjaxRequestTarget;
@@ -23,7 +24,7 @@
 import org.apache.wicket.markup.html.form.TextField;
 import org.apache.wicket.model.IModel;
 import org.apache.wicket.util.convert.IConverter;
-import org.apache.wicket.util.lang.Args;
+import org.danekja.java.util.function.serializable.SerializableSupplier;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.core.IJQueryWidget;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.core.JQueryBehavior;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.core.renderer.ITextRenderer;
@@ -40,7 +41,7 @@
  * @author Sebastien Briquet - sebfz1
  * @author reiern70
  */
-public abstract class AbstractAutoCompleteTextField<T> extends TextField<T> implements IJQueryWidget, IAutoCompleteListener // NOSONAR
+public abstract class AbstractAutoCompleteTextField<T> extends TextField<T> implements IJQueryWidget, IAutoCompleteListener<T> // NOSONAR
 {
 	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
 
@@ -51,6 +52,7 @@ public abstract class AbstractAutoCompleteTextField<T> extends TextField<T> impl
 
 	private final ITextRenderer<? super T> renderer;
 	private final IConverter<T> converter;
+	private final IElementSelectionStrategy<T> elementSelectionStrategy;
 
 	private final IJQueryTemplate template;
 	private JQueryAbstractTemplateBehavior templateBehavior = null;
@@ -108,6 +110,7 @@ public AbstractAutoCompleteTextField(String id, ITextRenderer<? super T> rendere
 		this.renderer = renderer;
 		this.template = this.newTemplate();
 		this.converter = this.newConverter();
+		this.elementSelectionStrategy = this.newElementSelectionStrategy();
 	}
 
 	/**
@@ -145,7 +148,7 @@ public AbstractAutoCompleteTextField(String id, IModel<T> model, ITextRenderer<?
 		this(id, model, renderer, null);
 	}
 
-	/**
+    /**
 	 * Constructor
 	 *
 	 * @param id the markup id
@@ -160,6 +163,7 @@ public AbstractAutoCompleteTextField(String id, IModel<T> model, ITextRenderer<?
 		this.renderer = renderer;
 		this.template = this.newTemplate();
 		this.converter = this.newConverter();
+		this.elementSelectionStrategy = this.newElementSelectionStrategy();
 	}
 
 	// Methods //
@@ -243,6 +247,16 @@ public ITextRenderer<? super T> getRenderer()
 		return this.renderer;
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Gets the {@link IElementSelectionStrategy} used to identify and resolve selected choices.
+	 *
+	 * @return the selection strategy, never {@code null}
+	 */
+	public IElementSelectionStrategy<T> getElementSelectionStrategy()
+	{
+		return this.elementSelectionStrategy;
+	}
+
 	// Events //
 
 	@Override
@@ -292,17 +306,30 @@ protected void onComponentTag(final ComponentTag tag)
 		tag.put("autocomplete", "off"); // disable browser's autocomplete
 	}
 
-	@Override
-	public final void onSelect(AjaxRequestTarget target, int index)
-	{
-		if (-1 < index && index < this.choices.getObject().size())
-		{
-			T choice = this.choices.getObject().get(index);
-
-			this.setModelObject(choice);
-			this.onSelected(target);
-		}
-	}
+    @Override
+    public final void onSelect(AjaxRequestTarget target, T choice, String identifier)
+    {
+        this.setModelObject(choice);
+        if (choice == null)
+        {
+            LOG.debug("Cannot select choice with ID: {}", identifier);
+            onSelectionFailed(target, identifier);
+        }
+        else
+        {
+            this.onSelected(target);
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Triggered when it was not possible to find an element to select
+     *
+     * @param target the {@link AjaxRequestTarget}
+     * @param identifier THe id of the Choice that could not be retrieved.
+     */
+    protected void onSelectionFailed(AjaxRequestTarget target, String identifier)
+    {
+    }
 
 	/**
 	 * Triggered when the user selects an item from results that matched its input
@@ -318,7 +345,13 @@ protected void onSelected(AjaxRequestTarget target)
 	@Override
 	public JQueryBehavior newWidgetBehavior(String selector)
 	{
-		return new AutoCompleteBehavior(selector, this) { // NOSONAR
+		return new AutoCompleteBehavior<T>(selector, this, new SerializableSupplier<List<T>>() {
+
+            @Override
+            public List<T> get() {
+                return choices != null ? choices.getObject() : Collections.emptyList();
+            }
+        }) { // NOSONAR
 
 			private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
 
@@ -394,6 +427,16 @@ public String convertToString(T value, Locale locale)
 		};
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Gets a new {@link IElementSelectionStrategy}. Index-based selection is used by default.
+	 *
+	 * @return the selection strategy
+	 */
+	protected IElementSelectionStrategy<T> newElementSelectionStrategy()
+	{
+		return IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy.get();
+	}
+
 	/**
 	 * Gets a new {@link AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior}
 	 *
@@ -401,11 +444,17 @@ public String convertToString(T value, Locale locale)
 	 */
 	private AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior<T> newChoiceModelBehavior()
 	{
-		return new AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior<T>(this.renderer, this.template) { // NOSONAR
-
+		return new AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior<T>(this.renderer, this.template) // NOSONAR
+		{
 			private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
 			private static final String TERM = "term";
 
+			@Override
+			protected IElementSelectionStrategy<T> getElementSelectionStrategy()
+			{
+				return AbstractAutoCompleteTextField.this.getElementSelectionStrategy();
+			}
+
 			@Override
 			public List<T> getChoices()
 			{
@@ -415,4 +464,34 @@ public List<T> getChoices()
 			}
 		};
 	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Gets the {@link AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior} that serves the choices to the widget
+	 *
+	 * @return the {@link AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior}, or {@code null} if the component has not been initialized yet
+	 */
+	public final AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior<T> getChoiceModelBehavior()
+	{
+		return this.choiceModelBehavior;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Gets the cached choices of the last query, used to resolve the user selected object
+	 *
+	 * @return the {@link IModel} of choices, or {@code null} if no query has been performed yet
+	 */
+	public final IModel<List<T>> getChoices()
+	{
+		return this.choices;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Gets the {@link JQueryAbstractTemplateBehavior} supplied by {@link #newTemplate()}
+	 *
+	 * @return the {@link JQueryAbstractTemplateBehavior}, or {@code null} if there is no template
+	 */
+	public final JQueryAbstractTemplateBehavior getTemplateBehavior()
+	{
+		return this.templateBehavior;
+	}
 }
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AutoCompleteBehavior.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AutoCompleteBehavior.java
index d2654d90b3..94570865f6 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AutoCompleteBehavior.java
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AutoCompleteBehavior.java
@@ -16,10 +16,14 @@
  */
 package org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete;
 
+import java.util.List;
+
 import org.apache.wicket.Component;
 import org.apache.wicket.ajax.AjaxRequestTarget;
 import org.apache.wicket.ajax.attributes.CallbackParameter;
+import org.apache.wicket.model.IModel;
 import org.apache.wicket.util.lang.Args;
+import org.danekja.java.util.function.serializable.SerializableSupplier;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.core.JQueryEvent;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.core.Options;
 import org.wicketstuff.jquery.core.ajax.IJQueryAjaxAware;
@@ -32,40 +36,45 @@
  *
  * @author Sebastien Briquet - sebfz1
  */
-public abstract class AutoCompleteBehavior extends JQueryUIBehavior implements IJQueryAjaxAware
+public abstract class AutoCompleteBehavior<T> extends JQueryUIBehavior implements IJQueryAjaxAware
 {
 	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
 	public static final String METHOD = "autocomplete";
 
 	/** event listener */
-	private final IAutoCompleteListener listener;
+	private final IAutoCompleteListener<T> listener;
+
+    /** the model producing values */
+
+    private final SerializableSupplier<List<T>> supplier;
 
 	private JQueryAjaxBehavior onSelectAjaxBehavior = null;
 
 	/**
 	 * Constructor
 	 *
-	 * @param selector the html selector (ie: "#myId")
+	 * @param selector the HTML selector (ie: "#myId")
 	 * @param listener the {@link IAutoCompleteListener}
 	 */
-	public AutoCompleteBehavior(String selector, IAutoCompleteListener listener)
+	public AutoCompleteBehavior(String selector, IAutoCompleteListener<T> listener, SerializableSupplier<List<T>> supplier)
 	{
-		this(selector, new Options(), listener);
+		this(selector, new Options(), listener, supplier);
 	}
 
 	/**
 	 * Constructor
 	 *
-	 * @param selector the html selector (ie: "#myId")
+	 * @param selector the HTML selector (ie: "#myId")
 	 * @param options the {@link Options}
 	 * @param listener the {@link IAutoCompleteListener}
 	 */
-	public AutoCompleteBehavior(String selector, Options options, IAutoCompleteListener listener)
+	public AutoCompleteBehavior(String selector, Options options, IAutoCompleteListener<T> listener, SerializableSupplier<List<T>> supplier)
 	{
 		super(selector, METHOD, options);
 
 		this.listener = Args.notNull(listener, "listener");
-	}
+        this.supplier = supplier;
+    }
 
 	// Methods //
 
@@ -108,16 +117,16 @@ public void onConfigure(Component component)
 	@Override
 	public void onAjax(AjaxRequestTarget target, JQueryEvent event)
 	{
-		if (event instanceof SelectEvent)
+		if (event instanceof SelectEvent selectEvent)
 		{
-			this.listener.onSelect(target, ((SelectEvent) event).getIndex());
+			this.listener.onSelect(target, listener.getElementSelectionStrategy().findChoice(supplier.get(), selectEvent.getIdentifier()), selectEvent.getIdentifier());
 		}
 	}
 
 	// Factories //
 
 	/**
-	 * Gets a new {@link JQueryAjaxBehavior} that will be wired to the 'select' event
+	 * Gets a new {@link JQueryAjaxBehavior} that will be wired to the 'select' eventta
 	 *
 	 * @param source the {@link IJQueryAjaxAware}
 	 * @return a new {@code OnSelectAjaxBehavior} by default
@@ -127,7 +136,7 @@ protected JQueryAjaxBehavior newOnSelectAjaxBehavior(IJQueryAjaxAware source)
 		return new OnSelectAjaxBehavior(source);
 	}
 
-	// Ajax classes //
+	// Ajax classes //,
 
 	/**
 	 * Provides a {@link JQueryAjaxBehavior} that aims to be wired to the 'select' event
@@ -163,16 +172,31 @@ protected JQueryEvent newEvent()
 	 */
 	protected static class SelectEvent extends JQueryEvent
 	{
-		private final int index;
+		private final String identifier;
 
 		public SelectEvent()
 		{
-			this.index = RequestCycleUtils.getQueryParameterValue("index").toInt(0);
+			this.identifier = RequestCycleUtils.getQueryParameterValue("index").toString();
 		}
 
-		public int getIndex()
+		/**
+		 * Gets the selected item identifier (JSON {@code id}). For the default index strategy this is the list index.
+		 *
+		 * @return the identifier
+		 */
+		public String getIdentifier()
 		{
-			return this.index;
+			return this.identifier;
 		}
 	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Gets the {@link JQueryAjaxBehavior} wired to the 'select' event
+	 *
+	 * @return the {@code OnSelectAjaxBehavior}, or {@code null} if the behavior has not been bound yet
+	 */
+	public final JQueryAjaxBehavior getOnSelectAjaxBehavior()
+	{
+		return this.onSelectAjaxBehavior;
+	}
 }
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior.java
index 619e4c3829..3953a6fc69 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior.java
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior.java
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@
  * @param <T> the model object type
  * @author Sebastien Briquet - sebfz1
  */
-abstract class AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior<T> extends ChoiceModelBehavior<T>
+public abstract class AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior<T> extends ChoiceModelBehavior<T>
 {
 	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
 
@@ -47,6 +47,16 @@ public AutoCompleteChoiceModelBehavior(ITextRenderer<? super T> renderer, IJQuer
 		super(renderer, template);
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Gets the {@link IElementSelectionStrategy}. Index-based selection is used by default.
+	 *
+	 * @return the selection strategy
+	 */
+	protected IElementSelectionStrategy<T> getElementSelectionStrategy()
+	{
+		return IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy.get();
+	}
+
 	@Override
 	protected String getResponse(IRequestParameters parameters)
 	{
@@ -61,7 +71,8 @@ protected String getResponse(IRequestParameters parameters)
 
 				// ITextRenderer //
 				final JSONObject object = this.renderer.render(choice);
-				object.put("id", Integer.toString(index)); /* 'id' is a reserved word */
+				String identifier = this.getElementSelectionStrategy().getIdentifier(choice, index);
+				object.put("id", identifier != null ? identifier : Integer.toString(index)); /* 'id' is a reserved word */
 				object.put("value", this.renderer.getText(choice)); /* 'value' is a reserved word */
 
 				// Additional properties (like template properties) //
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IAutoCompleteListener.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IAutoCompleteListener.java
index 4c091fc58f..50cebbd539 100644
--- a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IAutoCompleteListener.java
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IAutoCompleteListener.java
@@ -16,8 +16,12 @@
  */
 package org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete;
 
+import java.util.List;
+
 import org.apache.wicket.ajax.AjaxRequestTarget;
 import org.apache.wicket.util.io.IClusterable;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
 
 /**
  * Event listener shared by the {@link AutoCompleteTextField} widget and the {@link AutoCompleteBehavior}
@@ -25,13 +29,40 @@
  * @author Sebastien Briquet - sebfz1
  *
  */
-public interface IAutoCompleteListener extends IClusterable
+public interface IAutoCompleteListener<T> extends IClusterable
 {
+	Logger LOG = LoggerFactory.getLogger(IAutoCompleteListener.class);
+
+	/**
+	 * Gets the {@link IElementSelectionStrategy} used to identify a selected choice and to resolve it from the cached choice list.
+	 *
+	 * @return the {@link IElementSelectionStrategy}
+	 */
+	IElementSelectionStrategy<T> getElementSelectionStrategy();
+
 	/**
 	 * Triggered when a selection has been made
 	 *
 	 * @param target the {@link AjaxRequestTarget}
-	 * @param index the index of the selected item
+	 * @param choice the selected choice, or {@code null} if the identifier could not be resolved
+	 * @param identifier the identifier of the selected item (JSON {@code id}; list index by default, or a business id)
+	 */
+	void onSelect(AjaxRequestTarget target, T choice, String identifier);
+
+	/**
+	 * Triggered when a selection has been made, using the identifier posted by the client.
+	 * <p>
+	 * The default implementation resolves the choice from {@code choiceList} via
+	 * {@link #getElementSelectionStrategy()} and {@link IElementSelectionStrategy#findChoice(List, String)},
+	 * then delegates to {@link #onSelect(AjaxRequestTarget, Object, String)}.
+	 *
+	 * @param target the {@link AjaxRequestTarget}
+	 * @param choiceList the cached list of choices matching the last query
+	 * @param identifier the identifier of the selected item (JSON {@code id}; list index by default, or a business id)
 	 */
-	void onSelect(AjaxRequestTarget target, int index);
+	default void onSelect(AjaxRequestTarget target, List<T> choiceList, String identifier)
+	{
+        T choice = getElementSelectionStrategy().findChoice(choiceList, identifier);
+        onSelect(target, choice, identifier);
+	}
 }
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IElementSelectionStrategy.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IElementSelectionStrategy.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..7a1426d634
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IElementSelectionStrategy.java
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one or more
+ * contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file distributed with
+ * this work for additional information regarding copyright ownership.
+ * The ASF licenses this file to You under the Apache License, Version 2.0
+ * (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with
+ * the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *      http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete;
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.apache.wicket.util.io.IClusterable;
+
+/**
+ * Strategy used to identify a selected auto-complete choice and to resolve it from the cached choice list.
+ * <p>
+ * The identifier is written to the JSON {@code id} field and posted back when the user selects an item.
+ * {@link IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy} is the default implementation.
+ * <p>
+ * Implementations must be {@link Serializable}: the strategy is stored on a Wicket component and is
+ * serialized with the page/session.
+ *
+ * @param <T> the choice type
+ * @author reiern70
+ */
+public interface IElementSelectionStrategy<T> extends IClusterable, Serializable
+{
+	/**
+	 * Gets the identifier that uniquely represents the given choice in the current result set.
+	 *
+	 * @param choice the choice
+	 * @param index the index of the choice in the current result list
+	 * @return the identifier posted to the client (JSON {@code id})
+	 */
+	String getIdentifier(T choice, int index);
+
+	/**
+	 * Resolves the selected choice from the cached list using the identifier posted by the client.
+	 *
+	 * @param choices the cached list of choices
+	 * @param identifier the identifier posted by the client
+	 * @return the matching choice, or {@code null} if none matches
+	 */
+	T findChoice(List<T> choices, String identifier);
+}
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IdBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IdBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e585f30f73
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IdBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java
@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one or more
+ * contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file distributed with
+ * this work for additional information regarding copyright ownership.
+ * The ASF licenses this file to You under the Apache License, Version 2.0
+ * (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with
+ * the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *      http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete;
+
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Objects;
+
+/**
+ * {@link IElementSelectionStrategy} that identifies choices by an id value.
+ * Subclasses implement {@link #getValue(Object, int)} to extract that id.
+ *
+ * @param <T> the choice type
+ * @author reiern70
+ */
+public abstract class IdBasedElementSelectionStrategy<T> implements IElementSelectionStrategy<T>
+{
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	/**
+	 * Gets the id value that uniquely represents the given choice.
+	 *
+	 * @param choice the choice
+	 * @param index the index of the choice in the current result list
+	 * @return the id value, or {@code null} if none
+	 */
+	public abstract String getValue(T choice, int index);
+
+	@Override
+	public String getIdentifier(T choice, int index)
+	{
+		return this.getValue(choice, index);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public T findChoice(List<T> choices, String identifier)
+	{
+		if (choices == null || identifier == null)
+		{
+			return null;
+		}
+
+		for (int index = 0; index < choices.size(); ++index)
+		{
+			T choice = choices.get(index);
+
+			if (Objects.equals(identifier, this.getValue(choice, index)))
+			{
+				return choice;
+			}
+		}
+
+		return null;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..3d6d055340
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java
@@ -0,0 +1,86 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one or more
+ * contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file distributed with
+ * this work for additional information regarding copyright ownership.
+ * The ASF licenses this file to You under the Apache License, Version 2.0
+ * (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with
+ * the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *      http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete;
+
+import java.util.List;
+
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+/**
+ * {@link IElementSelectionStrategy} that identifies choices by their index in the current result list.
+ * This is the default strategy used by {@link AbstractAutoCompleteTextField}.
+ *
+ * @param <T> the choice type
+ * @author reiern70
+ */
+public class IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy<T> implements IElementSelectionStrategy<T>
+{
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+	private static final Logger logger = LoggerFactory.getLogger(IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy.class);
+
+	private static final IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy<Object> INSTANCE = new IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy<>();
+
+	/**
+	 * Gets a shared instance of this strategy.
+	 *
+	 * @param <T> the choice type
+	 * @return the shared strategy
+	 */
+	@SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
+	public static <T> IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy<T> get()
+	{
+		return (IndexBasedElementSelectionStrategy<T>) INSTANCE;
+	}
+
+	private Object readResolve()
+	{
+		return INSTANCE;
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String getIdentifier(T choice, int index)
+	{
+		return Integer.toString(index);
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public T findChoice(List<T> choices, String identifier)
+	{
+		if (choices == null || identifier == null)
+		{
+			return null;
+		}
+
+		try
+		{
+			int index = Integer.parseInt(identifier);
+
+			if (-1 < index && index < choices.size())
+			{
+				return choices.get(index);
+			}
+		}
+		catch (NumberFormatException e)
+		{
+			logger.warn("Failed to parse identifier '{}' as integer for choices lookup.", identifier, e);
+			return null;
+		}
+
+		return null;
+	}
+}
diff --git a/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/PropertyBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/PropertyBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..63ee541793
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wicketstuff-jquery-ui-parent/wicketstuff-jquery-ui/src/main/java/org/wicketstuff/jquery/ui/form/autocomplete/PropertyBasedElementSelectionStrategy.java
@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one or more
+ * contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file distributed with
+ * this work for additional information regarding copyright ownership.
+ * The ASF licenses this file to You under the Apache License, Version 2.0
+ * (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with
+ * the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *      http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package org.wicketstuff.jquery.ui.form.autocomplete;
+
+import org.apache.wicket.core.util.lang.PropertyResolver;
+import org.apache.wicket.util.lang.Args;
+
+/**
+ * {@link IdBasedElementSelectionStrategy} that resolves the id from a bean property expression.
+ *
+ * @param <T> the choice type
+ * @author reiern70
+ */
+public class PropertyBasedElementSelectionStrategy<T> extends IdBasedElementSelectionStrategy<T>
+{
+	private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
+
+	private final String idExpression;
+
+	/**
+	 * Constructor
+	 *
+	 * @param idExpression the property expression resolved on each choice (e.g. {@code "id"})
+	 */
+	public PropertyBasedElementSelectionStrategy(String idExpression)
+	{
+		this.idExpression = Args.notEmpty(idExpression, "idExpression");
+	}
+
+	@Override
+	public String getValue(T choice, int index)
+	{
+		if (choice == null)
+		{
+			return null;
+		}
+
+		Object value = PropertyResolver.getValue(this.idExpression, choice);
+
+		return value != null ? value.toString() : null;
+	}
+}