Magnesium alloys are known to have excellent physical and mechanical properties suitable for a number of industrial and technological applications. The propensity of Mg to form galvanic couples limits further industrial acceptance. This paper examines the conditions for the electroless deposition of ternary nickel-phosphorous-zinc [Ni-P-Zn] alloy films on AZ91D Mg alloys comparing the deposition with similar deposits on more traditional surfaces. The stable, aqueous, alkaline solutions used in this study do not require any pretreatment specific to the deposition and are able,to produce continuous coatings containing Zn up to around 24 wt% of the total cladding. (C) 2013 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.