A laser-beam welding method of performing lap fillet welding of a first metal plate and a second metal plate which are overlapped with each other such that a distal end surface (W2a) of the second metal plate is shifted with respect to a distal end surface (Wla) of the first metal plate to provide a stepwise configuration, the method including applying a laser beam to a laser-beam application region, the laser-beam application region including a portion of the first metal plate and a portion of the second metal plate, the first metal plate and the second metal plate being included in a plurality of metal plates overlapped with each other, the first metal plate being located on a first side in a plate-thickness direction of the plurality of metal plates and the second metal plate being located on a second side in the plate-thickness direction of the plurality of metal plates, and the laser beam being applied from the first side to the laser-beam application region, the laser-beam welding method comprising moving a laser-beam application position such that, while the laser-beam application position is moved along a locus which circularly or elliptically circles around a locus center so as to cross a weld line that is a boundary between the first metal plate and the second metal plate, the locus center is moved in a direction parallel to the weld line, wherein a moving direction of the laser-beam application position which conforms to the locus is set such that the laser beam is first applied to the first metal plate and then to the second metal plate when the laser beam passes through an unmelted zone of the first metal plate and the second metal plate, the unmelted zone being located downstream of a range through which the laser beam has already passed in the direction parallel to the weld line; and characterized in that the laser-beam application region is a predetermined range including i) a front end portion of a top surface (W1b) on the front side of the first metal plate, ii) the distal end surface (Wla) on the front side of the first metal plate, and iii) a portion of a top surface (W2b) on the front side of the second metal plate. the laser-beam welding method comprising moving a laser-beam application position such that, while the laser-beam application position is moved along a locus which circularly or elliptically circles around a locus center so as to cross a weld line that is a boundary between the first metal plate and the second metal plate, the locus center is moved in a direction parallel to the weld line, wherein a moving direction of the laser-beam application position which conforms to the locus is set such that the laser beam is first applied to the first metal plate and then to the second metal plate when the laser beam passes through an unmelted zone of the first metal plate and the second metal plate, the unmelted zone being located downstream of a range through which the laser beam has already passed in the direction parallel to the weld line; and characterized in that the laser-beam application region is a predetermined range including i) a front end portion of a top surface (W1b) on the front side of the first metal plate, ii) the distal end surface (Wla) on the front side of the first metal plate, and iii) a portion of a top surface (W2b) on the front side of the second metal plate.