Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare ordered airport and harbor officials to ask all visitors arriving from Korea whether they came into contact with people showing symptoms of MERS, Kyodo News reported.

The Japanese government has decided to check the health of all visitors from Korea as the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome crisis here deepens.

Visitors with a temperature of more than 38 degrees or other symptoms will be classified as suspected MERS carriers and be tested for the virus. Those who have symptoms but no fever on arrival will have their temperature checked twice daily for up to two weeks.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters that the ministry instructed regional governments to enforce the strengthened measures.

Taiwan's Centers for Disease Control, meanwhile, raised the epidemic travel advisory for the Seoul metropolitan area from a level-1 (watch) to level-2 (alert), urging travelers to maintain a high degree of caution and take strong protective measures.

The advisory urges Taiwanese citizens from avoiding visits to Korea and to stay away from hospitals unless they are seriously ill.

