Almost two-thirds of Irish people are in favour of the scrapping of 1c and 2c euro coins.
A new survey commissioned by the European Commission found 65% of Irish citizens supported the two smallest denominations of euro coins being abolished.
It was the eighth highest level of support for reducing the number of euro coin types among citizens of the 19 EU member states which use the euro as their currency and just above the euro area average of 64%.
The Eurobarometer poll surveyed almost 18,000 people across the euro area, including over 1,000 in the Republic, in October.
Support for the scrapping of the 1c and 2c coins ranges from 84% in Slovakia to 55% in Greece.
The survey showed males, those aged over 55 and those not working were most likely to be in favour of doing away with the smaller euro coin denominations.
However, despite their unpopularity, they are expected to remain in circulation for the foreseeable future.
“There are no plans to remove 1c and 2c coins and they remain legal tender,” said a spokesperson for the Central Bank of Ireland.
According to the Central Bank, there are over 1.1 billion one-cent coins in circulation in Ireland as well as 823.6 million two-cent coins.
The spokesperson said no new 1c and 2c coins have been produced in recent years as the introduction of rounding for cash transactions in 2015 to the nearest five cent led to surplus return stocks of the smaller coins.
Rounding was introduced as a voluntary measure for retailers and customers.
Its objective was to reduce the need for 1 and 2 cent coins which cost more to produce than they are worth.
It was also confirmed that the Central Bank has no plans for any further rounding experiments.
A trial on rounding in Wexford in 2013 was hailed a success as research showed it did not lead to any inflation effect on the price of goods.
The Eurobarometer poll also showed strong support for the euro in the 19 EU member states in the euro area with 77% of citizens in those countries regarding the currency as a good thing for the EU.
Support for the euro is strongest in Finland, Estonia and Slovenia and weakest in Italy, Germany and the Netherlands.
Ireland had the fifth highest level of support for the euro with 81% of Irish adults believing it makes a positive contribution to the EU.
However, Ireland had the second highest proportion of respondents at 80% after Finland in believing the euro was good for their own country compared to the euro area average of 69%.
The survey also revealed that almost four in 10 Irish adults believed the retirement age should be increased to ensure the sustainability of State pensions.
It showed 39% of respondents in Ireland favoured such a measure, compared to the euro area average of 28%.
The health system was identified as the most important sector in need of reform in 14 of the 19 euro area countries including Ireland where 94% supported changes to the current provision of healthcare.
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