Under the NPC Worldwide rules, there are specific exceptions to the mandatory status requirement.
If no NPC Regional competition has taken place in an athlete’s country of residence during the current calendar year, the athlete may register directly for a Pro Qualifier without holding a Regional Certificate.
Once an NPC Regional competition has been held in the athlete’s home country within the same calendar year, the mandatory status applies, and a valid Regional Certificate from that country is required for Pro Qualifier registration.
The Regional Certificate is valid only for the current competition year and is issued automatically after competing in an Open category at a Regional event in the athlete’s country of residence.