diff --git a/drivers/i2c/busses/i2c-designware-core.c b/drivers/i2c/busses/i2c-designware-core.c
index 99b54be6ba73..c6922b806fb7 100644
--- a/drivers/i2c/busses/i2c-designware-core.c
+++ b/drivers/i2c/busses/i2c-designware-core.c
@@ -663,7 +663,7 @@ i2c_dw_xfer(struct i2c_adapter *adap, struct i2c_msg msgs[], int num)
 	i2c_dw_xfer_init(dev);
 
 	/* wait for tx to complete */
-	if (!wait_for_completion_timeout(&dev->cmd_complete, HZ)) {
+	if (!wait_for_completion_timeout(&dev->cmd_complete, adap->timeout)) {
 		dev_err(dev->dev, "controller timed out\n");
 		/* i2c_dw_init implicitly disables the adapter */
 		i2c_dw_init(dev);