In the context of US patent law, does a provisional application count for foreign priority?

In the context of U.S. patent law, a provisional application does not count for foreign priority. According to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, in order to claim priority when filing a foreign patent application, a corresponding non-provisional application must be filed. A provisional application is considered a placeholder that grants the inventor a filing date but does not mature into an issued patent or provide the same benefits as a non-provisional application in terms of international rights and priorities.

While provisional applications can provide a means of establishing an early filing date in the U.S., they do not fulfill the requirements of a "regular" application necessary for claiming priority in other countries. This is crucial for inventors who wish to protect their inventions internationally, as they need to file a non-provisional application in the U.S. within one year of their provisional filing to take advantage of their filing date for subsequent foreign applications.

Other options may suggest some level of validity for provisional applications regarding foreign priority, or their capability to be converted into non-provisional applications, but fundamentally, only a non-provisional application can secure that priority under international patent law.