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e-Soleau vs a timestamp. INPI’s official French deposit and a Bitcoin-anchored fingerprint answer similar questions in different ways.

TimeBinder adds a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes.

A TimeBind is a dated, checkable record that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and still matches. The fingerprint is made in the browser, and the file stays on your device. Your first Pooled TimeBind is free; after that, TimeBinds start from US$5, and an ASAP TimeBind is US$15.

e-Soleau vs a timestamp: the short answer

The e-Soleau is a service of INPI, the French national intellectual property office. You deposit files, or only their digital fingerprints, and INPI sends a receipt carrying the deposit date, the time in UTC and the fingerprint of each document, sealed with an INPI server seal. It is the online successor to the paper Soleau envelope, which INPI stopped accepting on 1 April 2024.

A TimeBind is not an INPI record. It is a dated fingerprint of an exact file, made in your browser, never uploaded, and anchored to Bitcoin. If you want an official French deposit, with a French public body keeping the receipt (and, if you choose, the files), the e-Soleau is the better fit and costs from €15. If you want to date many working files or versions quickly, without an account with a public office, a TimeBind fits better. They can be used together. Neither proves who made the work or who owns it. Prices and product facts below were checked on each provider’s official pages on 13 November 2026 and may change. This is general information, not legal advice.

e-Soleau vs a TimeBind at a glance

	e-Soleau (INPI)	TimeBind
What it is	An official French deposit that produces a receipt with the date, the UTC time and a fingerprint of each document.	A dated, checkable fingerprint of an exact file, anchored to Bitcoin.
Who provides it	INPI, the French national IP office, through your INPI e-procedures account.	TimeBinder, as a self-serve app.
Is the file uploaded?	Your choice: INPI keeps the files (1 to 100 files, up to 2 GB in total), or it computes and keeps only the fingerprints.	No. The SHA-256 fingerprint is made in the browser.
What proves the receipt is intact	INPI says the receipt carries an INPI server seal, and the receipt fingerprints can be compared with fingerprints you recompute from your files.	The certificate and the Bitcoin transaction, plus a recomputed fingerprint of your file.
Retention	5 years, extendable three times to 10, 15 or 20 years. INPI says the receipt and documents are viewable for 15 days after deposit, then only the receipt stays online, and you can ask for the files back through the INPI portal.	The on-chain record does not expire. You must keep the exact original and the certificate.
Can the deposit be changed?	No. INPI says documents cannot be added or changed after the deposit is validated.	No. A changed file has a different fingerprint, so make a new TimeBind for each version.
Cost (13 Nov 2026)	From €15 for up to 50 MB, then €10 per further 50 MB, for each 5-year period. Extension fees follow the same scale and are not refunded.	First Pooled TimeBind free; then from US$5, or US$15 for ASAP.
Gives an exclusive right?	No.	No.

Sources: INPI, Déposer une e-Soleau ou un entiercement; Se préparer au dépôt d’une e-Soleau; Proroger une e-Soleau (all in French). INPI also offers a separate escrow service, the entiercement, from €100, which is not compared here. Terms: proof of existence, blockchain timestamp, SHA-256, prior art.

When to use which

Use the e-Soleau

You work in France, or expect a dispute there, and want an official INPI receipt
You want INPI to keep the files, not only the fingerprint, for 5 to 20 years
You are comfortable with an INPI e-procedures account and paying per 50 MB block

Use a dated file record

You want to date drafts, versions or large files quickly, with nothing uploaded
You want a record anyone can check against a public ledger, outside any one country’s office
You want a first record at no cost

The e-Soleau is an official option with a French public body behind it. A TimeBind has no such body behind it and is not a qualified eIDAS time stamp. See also i-DEPOT vs a timestamp, the Benelux equivalent.

What a TimeBind shows, and what it doesn’t

What it shows

That an exact file existed no later than the recorded time
That a later copy still matches, bit for bit, if the fingerprint is the same

What it doesn’t show

Who made the file, who owns it, or who holds the copyright
That the contents are true, original, or human-made
Whether AI was used, or how a court, platform or insurer will treat the record

The SHA-256 fingerprint is made in your browser. The file is never uploaded. The record is anchored to Bitcoin. This is general information, not legal advice.

Your file’s fingerprint, anchored to a global network secured by real electricity and cryptography.

Editing a file—including with AI—changes its fingerprint, not its existing network record.

How this works

Your file’s SHA-256 fingerprint, a short code worked out from its exact contents, is made in your browser, and the file itself stays on your device. A cryptographic commitment to that fingerprint, which may be combined with others, is then anchored in a block on the Bitcoin blockchain. Bitcoin is secured by proof of work: computers around the world spend real electricity to add each block, and changing an earlier block would mean redoing that work faster than the rest of the network. Until that block is confirmed, your proof is pending. Once the Bitcoin anchoring is confirmed, you can verify the proof against that recorded commitment. The confirmed record can then be checked; Pooled TimeBinds are checked through TimeBinder, while ASAP TimeBinds can also be checked independently. If you check the file later and its fingerprint still matches, that shows the file existed no later than the recorded time. The record doesn’t show who made the file, whether AI was used, or that its contents are true.

Your filestays on your device
FingerprintSHA-256
Network timestampon Bitcoin

Frequently asked questions

Is the e-Soleau the same as the old Soleau envelope?

It does the same job online. INPI says paper Soleau envelopes could no longer be sent to it from 1 April 2024, and that the service now runs online as e-Soleau through the INPI e-procedures portal.

Does an e-Soleau give me copyright or ownership?

No. INPI describes e-Soleau as a way to establish proof of the existence of a creation on a given date, and notes that copyright arises automatically on creation. A deposit is evidence about what existed and when. Who created the work, who owns it and how a court weighs the receipt are separate questions. This is general information, not legal advice.

Does INPI keep my files, or only a fingerprint?

You choose. INPI offers a deposit where it keeps your files (up to 2 GB), or a mode where it calculates and keeps only digital fingerprints, with no size limit and no file retention. In the fingerprint-only mode you must keep the originals yourself. A TimeBind works like the second mode: the fingerprint is made in your browser and the file is never uploaded.

Can I use an e-Soleau and a TimeBind together?

Yes. An e-Soleau is an official French deposit with a signed INPI receipt. A TimeBind is a Bitcoin-anchored record you can make for working files or versions at any time. Neither replaces the other. Neither creates a right.

What does a TimeBind cost?

Your first Pooled TimeBind is free. After that, Pooled TimeBinds start from US$5, and an ASAP TimeBind is US$15.

Related comparisons

Date the file without uploading it

Make a TimeBind of the exact file. The fingerprint is made in your browser, and the file stays on your device.

Make your first TimeBind free → See plans and pricing

Your first Pooled TimeBind is free, with no credit card required. After that, TimeBinds start from US$5, and an ASAP TimeBind is US$15. Your browser makes the fingerprint and the file stays on your device. A TimeBind shows a file existed no later than the recorded time. It doesn’t show who made it.

Open TimeBinder and timestamp a file

Fingerprint the file in your browser. The file stays on your device. Your first Pooled TimeBind is free; then from US$5, or US$15 for ASAP.

See plans and pricing