The 2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification phase determined the teams which advanced to the final tournament.

The qualification draw was held on 11 December 2012, in AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

[3] It was decided that starting from this tournament, an automatic qualification place will be given to the AFC Challenge Cup host.

[4] The hosting rights were given to Maldives in the AFC Competitions Committee meeting on 28 November.

To determine the two best second-placed teams, the following criteria were used:[10] For this ranking, the non-participation of Brunei in Group E meant that the results of the matches in the four other groups between the runner-up and the bottom-placed team were declared null and void based on Article 16.1 and Appendix 2 of the tournament regulations.