Countries earn a second or third entry for the following year's competition by earning points through skater placement. The points are equal to the sum of the placements of the country's skaters (top two if they have three). Entries do not carry over and so countries must continue to earn their second or third spot every year.
Countries can secure a second or third position in the following year's competition by earning points based on the placement of their skaters. The points are determined by adding up the positions of all the country's skaters (top two if they have three).  These entries do not carry over, so countries must continue to earn these spots each year.