Near-surface local magnetic properties and micromagnetic structure of electroplated composite NiFc/Cu microwires were studied employing magneto-optical micro-magnetometer. By scanning the light spot of I pm diameter along the wire length L, distributions of the magnetization components and local magnetization curves were measured. It was discovered that in all examined wires, the near-surface local magnetization components, parallel to the magnetic field, have the same sign, and those, perpendicular to H, have oscillatory, alternating-sign behavior. These data showed the presence of the near-surface circular domains with alternating left- and right-handled magnetization. It was experimentally proved that the dominant mechanism of the magnetization reversal of the studied wires is the magnetization rotation. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.