"The government plans to expand the fourth round of vaccination to those aged 60 and older," Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol told a meeting, adding the infection rate in the age group has continued to rise to stand above 20 per cent.
The country had previously begun providing second booster shots to high-risk groups, including those in nursing homes, as a surge in Omicron infections drove cases and deaths to record highs in recent months.
The Omicron-induced surge in cases appears to have peaked, with the daily infections falling to a third of record figures reached in mid-March.
South Korea reported 195,419 new coronavirus cases as of midnight on Tuesday, bringing the country's total tally to 15,830,644 infections and 20,034 deaths.
So far, 316,608 people have received a second booster shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency data showed, with around 33 million people - 64.2 per cent of the total population - having received a first booster shot.
The health ministry also said it will announce amendments to the current social distancing rules on Friday.
The country loosened COVID-19 measures earlier this month, pushing back the curfew on eateries and other businesses to midnight, and allowing wider private gatherings of up to 10 people.
Son Young-rae, a health ministry official, said in a radio interview on Tuesday a complete removal of all limits on the opening hours of businesses and private gatherings were among measures being considered as the effectiveness of the distancing rules "have been declining".
The current mask-wearing mandate is also on the list of measures being reviewed, he said.
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