The invention relates to a method for the surface treatment of
magnesium alloy. The method includes that a
metal coating is formed on the surface of the
magnesium alloy, wherein, the method for forming
metal coating on the surface of the
magnesium alloy comprises the following steps: first, a
zinc layer is coated on the surface of the
magnesium alloy through
electroless plating, then at least a layer of
metal layer is electrocoated on the
zinc layer of
electroless plating, and at least a layer of metal or metal compound is coated on the electrocoated metal layer by adopting an
ion plating method. After the
zinc layer of
electroless plating is treated by the method,
electroplating is performed to the
magnesium alloy first by the method of combining the
electroplating and
ion plating; the plating layer obtained after
ion plating is performed to the electrocoated metal layer has uniform thickness; the plating layer is smooth; the
corrosion resistance is remarkably improved; and the binding power between the base material of the
magnesium alloy and the plating layer is also better. The magnesium alloy after through surface treatment can integrate good
corrosion resistance and good decoration effect, and at the same time, can meet the requirements of high performance and high aesthetics of various industries for the magnesium alloy products, such as the automobile industry, the
electronic industry, etc.