diff --git a/src/components/ai-toolbar.tsx b/src/components/ai-toolbar.tsx
index ac1417b..fde82eb 100644
--- a/src/components/ai-toolbar.tsx
+++ b/src/components/ai-toolbar.tsx
@@ -121,6 +121,7 @@ export const AIToolbar = ({
 		"Project sync tomorrow from 9am to 10am on Google Meet with a weekly repeat.",
 		"Dentist appointment on May 14 at 3pm at Smile Studio, add confirmation #A4821.",
 	];
+	const canUseAi = adminAiEnabled && aiEnabled;
 
 	// Ref to imperatively open the file picker from the keyboard shortcut
 	const imageTriggerRef = useRef<{ open: () => void }>(null);
@@ -153,7 +154,7 @@ export const AIToolbar = ({
 	//                      focused element or OS clipboard model (X11/Wayland).
 	//                      This is the approach used by Excalidraw's actionPaste.
 	useEffect(() => {
-		if (!isAuthenticated || isPending) return;
+		if (!isAuthenticated || isPending || !canUseAi || aiLoading) return;
 
 		// ── Handler 1: paste event (works when textarea is NOT focused) ───────
 		const handleDocumentPaste = (e: ClipboardEvent) => {
@@ -247,9 +248,9 @@ export const AIToolbar = ({
 			document.removeEventListener("paste", handlePasteHandled, {
 				capture: true,
 			});
-			document.removeEventListener("keydown", handleDocumentKeydown);
+				document.removeEventListener("keydown", handleDocumentKeydown);
 		};
-	}, [isAuthenticated, isPending]); // onImagesSelect intentionally omitted — ref stays current
+	}, [isAuthenticated, isPending, canUseAi, aiLoading]); // onImagesSelect intentionally omitted — ref stays current
 
 	if (isPending) {
 		return (
@@ -261,7 +262,6 @@ export const AIToolbar = ({
 	}
 
 	const hasImages = imagePreviews.length > 0;
-	const canUseAi = adminAiEnabled && aiEnabled;
 	const showDisabledState = isAuthenticated && !canUseAi;
 
 	return (
diff --git a/tests/ai-toolbar.test.ts b/tests/ai-toolbar.test.ts
index fb1b2bc..819c3e0 100644
--- a/tests/ai-toolbar.test.ts
+++ b/tests/ai-toolbar.test.ts
@@ -323,6 +323,19 @@ describe("Keyboard shortcuts – toolbar integration contract", () => {
 	});
 });
 
+describe("Global paste capture – AI availability gate", () => {
+	test("document-level paste handlers only arm when AI is actually usable", () => {
+		const source = readToolbarSource();
+
+		expect(source).toContain(
+			"if (!isAuthenticated || isPending || !canUseAi || aiLoading) return;",
+		);
+		expect(source).toContain(
+			"}, [isAuthenticated, isPending, canUseAi, aiLoading]);",
+		);
+	});
+});
+
 // ─── Cycle 8: Multi-image thumbnail strip ────────────────────────────────────
 //
 // When multiple images are attached, they render as a horizontal scrollable