A system for preventing restricted transactions using physical trade documents includes a document intake machine comprising a document scanner and a data extractor. The document intake machine receives a physical trade document associated with a transaction of goods from an entity. The document scanner scans the physical trade document to create an electronic file. The data extractor identifies trade terms from the electronic file. A trade-executing machine receives the trade terms and compares them to a database of restricted trade terms. For each of the trade terms that match a restricted trade term, the trade executing machines identifies a confidence level associated with the trade term indicating a likelihood that the transaction of goods is a restricted transaction. If the confidence level is greater than a predetermined threshold, the trade executing machine flags the transaction of goods as a potential restricted transaction and communicates a notification message to the entity.