Fifteen countries have so far banned or restricted entry of South Korean nationals or foreigners who have been to South Korea in response to the rising number of COVID-19 infections in the country.

The Foreign Ministry on Monday said six countries, namely Israel, Bahrain, Jordan, Kiribati, Samoa and American Samoa, are prohibiting entry of foreigners who have been in South Korea the past 14 days or requiring them to spend 14 days in a country that has no reported cases for testing before entry.

Although it hasn't made an official announcement, the island nation of Mauritius off the southeast coast of Africa, has recently deferred entry approval for South Korean nationals, some of whom showed symptoms, such as fever.

Nine other countries, namely, Brunei, Britain, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Macao, Oman, Ethiopia, Uganda and Qatar, have heightened entry procedures, either placing passengers arriving from South Korea in quarantine or conducting a health check.

The United States and Taiwan have raised travel alerts to South Korea, while Britain and Singapore advise its nationals to refrain from visiting South Korea's virus-stricken regions of Daegu and Cheongdo.