A method and apparatus are provided for tracking documents. The documents are tracked by simultaneously monitoring each document's electronic processing status and physical location. Determinations are made whether specific combinations of electronic processing states and physical locations are valid and whether specific movements of documents are permitted. Invalid combinations or movements are reported to a reporting station. The preparation of batches of documents prior to scanning may be monitored and operator metrics related to the batch prep process may be tracked. Exception documents rejected during document processing may be monitored to enable retrieval of such documents.