Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has said she hopes that patients will be in the new National Children's Hospital by next Christmas.
Speaking at an early access visit to the hospital, the minister said that she would have liked to have had access sooner.
The minister said BAM, which built the hospital, had moved the completion dates back on numerous occasions.
Ms Carroll MacNeill said that CHI was at the hospital cleaning and getting ready to move into it.
She said she had seen better engagement from BAM over the past few months, and said that that needed to continue and she expected it to continue over Christmas.
The minister said she had been working on what she can control and what CHI can do to be ready to move in.
The early access visit to the new hospital has been long awaited.
It was originally due to be completed in 2022 but has been beset by delays and cost overruns, failing to meet its opening deadline 16 times.
BAM had set a completion date of 24 November this year, but that was again missed.
The board overseeing the project, the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board (NPHDB), said that the delays has caused deep frustration.
Construction on the site began in 2016 after years of disagreement over the location.
Since then, the cost of the hospital has soared from €987 million to €2.2 billion.
The NPHDB has been withholding 15% of certified monthly payments to BAM until a date of substantial completion is agreed.
CHI said hospital equipment will begin coming through the doors of the hospital in the coming days, but the date for when patients to begin to be treated is yet to be confirmed.
In a statement, BAM said that it "greatly welcomes the opportunity for early access and continues to engage closely with the NPHDB to facilitate this process.
"Areas of the hospital have been completed and offered to the NPHDB, enabling CHI to commence the commissioning process.
"BAM remains fully committed to delivering this project to the highest standards, working closely with all stakeholders to actively manage the challenges involved and to secure the earliest possible opening date for the children of Ireland."
