Minister for Communications Alex White has said agreements with companies including Google and Satnav to recognise the Eircode systems are complete and he expects that "licences will be signed off on in next few weeks".

The new postcode system was launched in July last year with every house in the country getting a unique seven-digit identifying code.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Today with Sean O'Rourke, Minister White said he hoped that the process could have been finished sooner, but it had not been possible.

He said Eircode is still at a "very early stage" but he believes it will be more widely used when "people see the value to it".

Mr White said there is huge demand for the Eircode system.

He said online business will be the main form of trading over the next few years and eircodes are going to be critical for that.

Mr White said that up until last year, Ireland was the only country in the OECD without a postcode system.