Vaccines given with a painless skin patch rather than needles are a step closer after Australian innovators secured a deal with international vaccine manufacturer Merck.

The Nanopatch, developed by University of Queensland Professor Mark Kendall and his bioengineering and nanotechnology team, uses 100 times less vaccine than a syringe and is smaller than a postage stamp.

The technology is being commercialised by an investor-backed company, Vaxxas, formed in August 2011, but the partnership with Merck has injected extra research funds and potentially opens up a suite of vaccines to eventually be used with the patch.

Merck, the international distributor of the Gardasil HPV vaccine pioneered by Australia's Professor Ian Frazer, will initially fund Vaxxas to evaluate the Nanopatch for use with one of its vaccines.

'This is an essential step for Vaxxas because for the first time we have a partnership with one of the world's largest vaccine manufacturers,' Prof Kendall told AAP on Monday.

He said the deal validated the development of the Nanopatch, which was selected by Merck from a field of about 40 other international technologies.

Vaxxas raised about $15 million last year to commercialise the Nanopatch technology.

This process will involve several rigorous testing phases to ensure the patch is effective and safe.

The patch had already been tested in animal models and would move into human clinical trials within the next two years, Prof Kendall said.

'If everything works well, quite possibly this could be on the market within the next five to seven years,' he said.

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Needle-less technology developed in Aust