In this study, oxygen argon plasma (OArP) treatment was introduced as a new method for controlling hydrogen uptake in austenitic stainless steels during cathodic protection. It was determined that a 5-min treatment with OArP did not affect the nanomechanical properties of the material or the dislocation nucleation process; but it greatly inhibited the effect of hydrogen when the surfaces were in situ electrochemically hydrogen charged. Moreover, the cyclic voltammetry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy tests showed that the applied treatment influenced the composition of the surface oxide which in turn influences the hydrogen uptake from the surface. Copyright (C) 2014, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.