Surface modifications of AISI 304L stainless steel by laser surface melting (LSM) were investigated using a nanosecond pulsed laser-fibre doped by ytterbium at different overlaps. The objective was to study the change in the corrosion properties induced by the treatment of the outer-surface of the stainless steel without modification of the bulk material. Different analytical techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and glow discharge optical emission spectrometry (GDOES) were used to characterize the laser-melted surface. The corrosion resistance was evaluated in a chloride solution at room temperature by electrochemical tests. The results showed that the crystallographic structure, the chemical composition, the properties of the induced oxide layer and consequently the pitting corrosion resistance strongly depend on the overlap rate. The most efficient laser parameters led to an increase of the pitting potential by more than 300 mV, corresponding to a quite important improvement of the corrosion resistance. This latter was correlated to chromium enrichment (47 wt.%) at the surface of the stainless steel and the induced absence of martensite and ferrite phases. However, these structural and chemical modifications were not sufficient to explain the change in corrosion behaviour: defects and adhesion of the surface oxide layer must have been taken into consideration. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.