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In this study, 6061--T6 aluminum alloys were plated with electroless Ni--P with different phosphorus content and three--point bending and rotary bending fatigue tests. The effects of hydrogen due to plating on mechanical properties were investigated. It was shown that the ductility decreased immediately after low--phosphorus type and high--phosphorus type Ni--P plating by three--point bending test because a hydrogen was introduced into the alloys. The fatigue strength of the low--phosphorus type Ni--P plated specimen was higher than that of the untreated specimen, while that of the high--phosphorus type plated specimen was much lower. It is clear that the fatigue strength differs greatly depending on the phosphorus content in the plating film. 6061--T6 aluminum alloy have been reported to exhibit no hydrogen embrittlement in low strain rate tensile tests under wet condition. However, it was found that hydrogen embrittlement occurred when 6061--T6 aluminum alloy was plated with the high--phosphorus type electroless Ni--P and fatigue--tested on rotary bending machine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]