Prior to this, the Post Office in Ireland had been under the control of various Postmasters General, Irish and British, with the appointment of Evan Vaughan as postmaster in Dublin in 1638, generally accepted as the date for the establishment of a semi-formal postal system in Ireland.

[citation needed] The closure of individual branches in rural areas has become a significant political issue.

[7] All parcels arriving in Ireland pass through An Post's mail centre in Portlaoise, where customs officials are on duty to inspect them.

[11] This service, entitled PostPoint and operated as subsidiary of An Post, was originally formed in 2000 to sell mobile phone top-ups over-the-counter to Eircell subscribers.

Between 1984 and 2004 the company operated a postbus route linking Ennis with parts of County Clare.

It is responsible for the collection of revenue, inspection, and prosecution in cases of non-payment of the licence on behalf of the state.

[4] In 2017, An Post launched AddressPal, a package forwarding service, operating through its subsidiary Air Business in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England.

[26] In February 2012, the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) launched legal proceedings against An Post over the quality of its service.

[27] In August 2018, it was announced that all post offices serving communities of fewer than 500 people (excluding offshore islands) were to be closed.

[28] However, three of these 159 branches were "spared" closure following local campaigns at Ballinskelligs (Kerry), Cliffoney (Sligo), and Ballycroy (Mayo).