The i-depot is a service offered by the Benelux Office for Intellectual Property.

It aims to provide you with objective proof that you had a particular idea or creation on a certain date. However, an i-depot is not the same as applying for a patent for your idea and creates no right so that it is still necessary to determine whether the implementation or expression of your idea could benefit from protection under intellectual property rights.

There are also various alternatives for obtaining a valid proof of date, such as via a notary public or through the Registration Office (of the Department of Registration and Public Property of the Belgian Ministry of Finance). Certain copyright associations also provide a similar service.

The advantage of the i-depot is that an online registration is possible at a relatively low cost.