Diplomatic ties were established in 1957 when Malaysia gained independence. Sri Lanka Mission in Kuala Lumpur was set up in the same year. In 1967 Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake made an official state visit to Malaysia which was the first high level visit by Sri Lanka to Malaysia.

In 1997 President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga made a State Visit to Malaysia at the invitation of the government of Malaysia. During the visit several bilateral agreements and MoUs were signed to enhance bilateral relations between two countries. Several Ministerial delegations were exchanged since establishment of diplomatic relations.

During following the signing of agreement on economic, scientific and technical cooperation in 1997 established the Sri Lanka and Malaysia Joint Commission and its inaugural meeting were held in Colombo in 2006. The Second Joint Commission Meeting between Sri Lanka and Malaysia which was chaired by Minister of External Affairs, Hon. Professor G L Peiris and Hon. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Hamzah Zainudin held in Kuala Lumpur on 22 nd October 2013.

Following an initiative by the High Commission of Sri Lanka in Kuala Lumpur reactivated the Malaysia – Sri Lanka Business Council. Malaysia – Sri Lanka Business council initially started in 1998.