diff --git a/assets/javascripts/discourse/components/param-input-form.gjs b/assets/javascripts/discourse/components/param-input-form.gjs
index 1a58998..926cc3c 100644
--- a/assets/javascripts/discourse/components/param-input-form.gjs
+++ b/assets/javascripts/discourse/components/param-input-form.gjs
@@ -1,8 +1,9 @@
 import Component from "@glimmer/component";
-import { action } from "@ember/object";
+import EmberObject, { action } from "@ember/object";
 import { inject as service } from "@ember/service";
 import { dasherize } from "@ember/string";
 import { isEmpty } from "@ember/utils";
+import ConditionalLoadingSpinner from "discourse/components/conditional-loading-spinner";
 import Form from "discourse/components/form";
 import Category from "discourse/models/category";
 import I18n from "I18n";
@@ -49,22 +50,20 @@ const ERRORS = {
 function digitalizeCategoryId(value) {
   value = String(value || "");
   const isPositiveInt = /^\d+$/.test(value);
-  if (!isPositiveInt) {
-    if (/\//.test(value)) {
-      const match = /(.*)\/(.*)/.exec(value);
-      if (!match) {
-        value = null;
-      } else {
-        value = Category.findBySlug(
-          dasherize(match[2]),
-          dasherize(match[1])
-        )?.id;
-      }
-    } else {
-      value = Category.findBySlug(dasherize(value))?.id;
-    }
+  if (!isPositiveInt && value.trim()) {
+    return Category.asyncFindBySlugPath(dasherize(value))
+      .then((res) => res.id)
+      .catch((err) => {
+        if (err.jqXHR?.status === 404) {
+          throw new ParamValidationError(
+            `${ERRORS.NO_SUCH_CATEGORY}: ${value}`
+          );
+        } else {
+          throw new Error(err.errorThrow || err.message);
+        }
+      });
   }
-  return value?.toString();
+  return value;
 }
 
 function normalizeValue(info, value) {
@@ -158,36 +157,72 @@ export default class ParamInputForm extends Component {
   infoOf = {};
   form = null;
 
+  promiseNormalizations = [];
+
   constructor() {
     super(...arguments);
-
-    const initialValues = this.args.initialValues;
-    for (const info of this.args.paramInfo) {
-      const identifier = info.identifier;
-
-      // access parsed params if present to update values to previously ran values
-      let initialValue;
-      if (initialValues && identifier in initialValues) {
-        initialValue = initialValues[identifier];
-      } else {
-        // if no parsed params then get and set default values
-        initialValue = info.default;
-      }
-      this.data[identifier] = normalizeValue(info, initialValue);
-      this.paramInfo.push({
-        ...info,
-        validation: validationOf(info),
-        validate: this.validatorOf(info),
-        component: componentOf(info),
-      });
-      this.infoOf[identifier] = info;
-    }
+    this.initializeParams();
 
     this.args.onRegisterApi?.({
       submit: this.submit,
+      allNormalized: Promise.allSettled(this.promiseNormalizations),
     });
   }
 
+  initializeParams() {
+    this.args.paramInfo.forEach((info) => {
+      const identifier = info.identifier;
+      const pinfo = this.createParamInfo(info);
+
+      this.paramInfo.push(pinfo);
+      this.infoOf[identifier] = info;
+
+      const normalized = this.getNormalizedValue(info);
+
+      if (normalized instanceof Promise) {
+        this.handlePromiseNormalization(normalized, pinfo);
+      } else {
+        this.data[identifier] = normalized;
+      }
+    });
+  }
+
+  createParamInfo(info) {
+    return EmberObject.create({
+      ...info,
+      validation: validationOf(info),
+      validate: this.validatorOf(info),
+      component: componentOf(info),
+    });
+  }
+
+  getNormalizedValue(info) {
+    const initialValues = this.args.initialValues;
+    const identifier = info.identifier;
+    return normalizeValue(
+      info,
+      initialValues && identifier in initialValues
+        ? initialValues[identifier]
+        : info.default
+    );
+  }
+
+  handlePromiseNormalization(promise, pinfo) {
+    this.promiseNormalizations.push(promise);
+    pinfo.set("loading", true);
+    this.data[pinfo.identifier] = null;
+
+    promise
+      .then((res) => this.form.set(pinfo.identifier, res))
+      .catch((err) =>
+        this.form.addError(pinfo.identifier, {
+          title: pinfo.identifier,
+          message: err.message,
+        })
+      )
+      .finally(() => pinfo.set("loading", false));
+  }
+
   getErrorFn(info) {
     const isPositiveInt = (value) => /^\d+$/.test(value);
     const VALIDATORS = {
@@ -321,6 +356,10 @@ export default class ParamInputForm extends Component {
               as |field|
             >
               <info.component @field={{field}} @info={{info}} />
+              <ConditionalLoadingSpinner
+                @condition={{info.loading}}
+                @size="small"
+              />
             </form.Field>
           </div>
         {{/each}}
diff --git a/assets/javascripts/discourse/components/param-input/category-id-input.gjs b/assets/javascripts/discourse/components/param-input/category-id-input.gjs
index 2222eb4..96d5baa 100644
--- a/assets/javascripts/discourse/components/param-input/category-id-input.gjs
+++ b/assets/javascripts/discourse/components/param-input/category-id-input.gjs
@@ -1,26 +1,20 @@
 import Component from "@glimmer/component";
-import { tracked } from "@glimmer/tracking";
-import { action } from "@ember/object";
 import CategoryChooser from "select-kit/components/category-chooser";
 
-export default class GroupListInput extends Component {
-  @tracked value;
-  constructor() {
-    super(...arguments);
-    this.value = this.args.field.value;
-  }
-
-  @action
-  update(id) {
-    this.value = id;
-    this.args.field.set(id);
+export default class CategoryIdInput extends Component {
+  // CategoryChooser will try to modify the value of value,
+  // triggering a setting-on-hash error. So we have to do the dirty work.
+  get data() {
+    return {
+      value: this.args.field.value,
+    };
   }
 
   <template>
     <@field.Custom id={{@field.id}}>
       <CategoryChooser
-        @value={{this.value}}
-        @onChange={{this.update}}
+        @value={{this.data.value}}
+        @onChange={{@field.set}}
         name={{@info.identifier}}
       />
     </@field.Custom>
diff --git a/assets/javascripts/discourse/controllers/admin-plugins-explorer.js b/assets/javascripts/discourse/controllers/admin-plugins-explorer.js
index 8b14341..dfe49cb 100644
--- a/assets/javascripts/discourse/controllers/admin-plugins-explorer.js
+++ b/assets/javascripts/discourse/controllers/admin-plugins-explorer.js
@@ -359,11 +359,6 @@ export default class PluginsExplorerController extends Controller {
     this.form = form;
   }
 
-  @action
-  updateParams(identifier, value) {
-    this.selectedItem.set(`params.${identifier}`, value);
-  }
-
   @action
   updateSearch(value) {
     this.search = value;
diff --git a/assets/javascripts/discourse/controllers/group-reports-show.js b/assets/javascripts/discourse/controllers/group-reports-show.js
index d429dd3..41f0b8b 100644
--- a/assets/javascripts/discourse/controllers/group-reports-show.js
+++ b/assets/javascripts/discourse/controllers/group-reports-show.js
@@ -130,13 +130,6 @@ export default class GroupReportsShowController extends Controller {
     });
   }
 
-  // This is necessary with glimmer's one way data stream to get the child's
-  // changes of 'params' to bubble up.
-  @action
-  updateParams(identifier, value) {
-    this.set(`model.params.${identifier}`, value);
-  }
-
   @action
   onRegisterApi(form) {
     this.form = form;
diff --git a/test/javascripts/components/param-input-test.js b/test/javascripts/components/param-input-test.js
index a116e28..b9e9e10 100644
--- a/test/javascripts/components/param-input-test.js
+++ b/test/javascripts/components/param-input-test.js
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ const InputTestCases = [
     tests: [
       {
         input: null,
-        data_null: undefined,
+        data_null: "",
         error: ERRORS.REQUIRED,
       },
       {
@@ -111,8 +111,9 @@ module("Data Explorer Plugin | Component | param-input", function (hooks) {
           initialValues: config.initial
             ? { [testcase.type]: config.initial }
             : {},
-          onRegisterApi: ({ submit }) => {
+          onRegisterApi: ({ submit, allNormalized }) => {
             this.submit = submit;
+            this.allNormalized = allNormalized;
           },
         });
 
@@ -124,6 +125,8 @@ module("Data Explorer Plugin | Component | param-input", function (hooks) {
           @onRegisterApi={{this.onRegisterApi}}
         />`);
 
+        await this.allNormalized;
+
         if (config.initial || config.default) {
           const data = await this.submit();
           const val = config.initial || config.default;
@@ -201,4 +204,34 @@ module("Data Explorer Plugin | Component | param-input", function (hooks) {
     await fillIn(`[name="string"]`, "");
     assert.rejects(this.submit());
   });
+
+  test("async normalizion", async function (assert) {
+    this.setProperties({
+      param_info: [
+        {
+          identifier: "category_id",
+          type: "category_id",
+          default: "support",
+          nullable: false,
+        },
+      ],
+      initialValues: {},
+      onRegisterApi: (paramInputApi) => {
+        this.paramInputApi = paramInputApi;
+      },
+    });
+
+    await render(hbs`
+    <ParamInputForm
+      @initialValues={{this.initialValues}}
+      @paramInfo={{this.param_info}}
+      @onRegisterApi={{this.onRegisterApi}}
+    />`);
+
+    await this.paramInputApi.allNormalized;
+
+    this.paramInputApi.submit().then((res) => {
+      assert.strictEqual(res.category_id, "1003");
+    });
+  });
 });