Obtaining a license and obtaining a certificate of operation are not necessarily linked (policies regarding transmission power, for example, do not affect the issuance of a license), so I plan to take the exam in the near future. If I postpone it until the second half of the year, I should pay attention to any changes in the question bank.
Regarding the issue of upper-floor power, you can call your local authorities before purchasing a shortwave radio to inquire about their policies. As the "big boss" mentioned, most areas allow the use of high-power radios.