Ultra high strength steels components for automotive applications are increasingly produced by hot stamping leading to low residual stresses and homogeneous microstructures. However as yield strength in these components increases beyond 1100MPa, a risk of hydrogen embrittlement fracture may occur before the painting operation or while the vehicle is in use. In this work the impact of annealing parameters and chemical composition on hydrogen absorption and delayed fracture resistance has been studied for model thin gauge bare martensitic steels obtained by tailored austenitizing and quenching treatments simulating the hot stamping process. A clear effect of chemical composition on hydrogen absorption...