The invention relates to a method by which stitch welds (5) can be produced on the front faces of metal sheets (preferably on flanges) by means of laser welding. In order to produce the stitch weld seam, the following steps are repeated cyclically: pre-heating the joining partners (1, 2) in an area in front of the stitch weld seam to be produced, producing a short stitch weld section (7) at a relatively low resulting welding speed, and producing a section without a weld seam, as a result of which in each case an intermediate space (9) is formed between neighbouring stitch weld sections (7). The ratio of the lengths (6, 8) of intermediate spaces (9) and stitch weld sections (7) is selected in such a way that a degassing is achieved to such an extent that a high quality of the stitch weld seam (5) is achieved. The method is particularly suitable for producing welded joints between galvanized, heat-treated steel sheets, as are often used in automobile manufacture/vehicle body construction.
