Nepal recorded 10,258 new infections on Tuesday, government data showed, the highest number reported in a single day as the government projected the tally could double by the end of the month.

Total infections since the start of the pandemic topped 972,198 and coronavirus-related deaths stood at 11,624.

The previous daily record was 9483 cases in May last year.

Authorities extended an earlier ban on large public gatherings in the hill-ringed Kathmandu valley, home to more than four million people, until February 12 from January 29 to try to control the spread of the virus.

Nepal's daily number of infections is likely to double by the end of January and hospitalisation cases could increase greatly to put further strain on the country's poor health infrastructure, officials said.

"This is just a projection for us to prepare," Krishna Prasad Poudel, head of the epidemiology and disease control division, told Reuters.

"Actual numbers could be higher or lower than the likely 20,000 daily cases before they begin to fall."

Hospitals ran short of beds and many patients died due to lack of oxygen when the outbreak of the Delta variant peaked in May last year.

"The government has made adequate arrangements to ensure that there is no shortage of oxygen this time," Poudel said.

Nepal, which has double vaccinated 40.6 per cent of its 30 million people since last year, began giving COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to frontline workers on Monday.

Neighbouring Bhutan reported a daily tally of 141 cases on Monday, also the highest number since the pandemic began.

Meanwhile, the Israeli government said on Tuesday it will start distributing up to 30 million free rapid antigen tests next week with a focus on schoolchildren, lower-income families and the elderly.

"The government is looking for every way to assist the citizens of Israel in getting through the Omicron wave. We have decided to provide free tests to the citizens of Israel, pupils and the overall population," Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said in a statement.

Israel recently relaxed stringent rules requiring PCR tests due to overcrowding at test sites and the strain placed on laboratories.

The government is now allowing more people to take a rapid test on their own at home - for instance, if they came into contact with an infected person - rather than obliging them to take PCR tests.

An antigen test kit can cost about $US7 ($A9.70) in Israel, an amount the government is reportedly working on getting lowered.

Lately, almost 50,000 new coronavirus cases were being reported daily.

The Health Ministry has not published any new figures since Sunday evening - a lag that is due to the reporting system being overwhelmed, according to Israeli media.

Only about 62 per cent of the population is considered fully vaccinated - which Israel defines as being double jabbed and receiving the last jab less than six months ago or having received a booster.

Officials in Stockholm said on Tuesday that travellers to Sweden will no longer be required to show a negative COVID-19 test before entering the country.

Sweden introduced rules for a recent negative COVID-19 test on December 28 last year in a bid to slow the spread of the more contagious Omicron variant.

Since then, Sweden has repeatedly set new daily case records with Omicron now the totally dominant variant.

"Travellers are no longer considered to pose a particular risk of affecting the spread of Omicron in Sweden," the government said in a statement.

with reporting from Reuters

Australian Associated Press