The 2015 AFC Asian Cup, hosted by Australia, featured 16 teams.

In the initial scheme, ten places were determined by qualification matches, while six places were reserved for the following: As the host nation Australia also finished as runners-up in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup, the initial 6 automatic qualification spots were reduced to 5, with a total of 11 spots eventually determined by the qualification matches, in which 20 AFC members compete.

[1] The preliminary draw was held in Melbourne on 9 October 2012, 18:00 UTC+11.

[3] Uzbekistan Qatar Jordan Iran Iraq China Bahrain Syria United Arab Emirates Kuwait Saudi Arabia Oman Thailand Yemen Vietnam Malaysia Singapore Indonesia Lebanon Hong Kong The following teams did not enter the main qualifying draw, as categorized as "emerging countries" they compete separately.

As 15 and 19 November 2013 were also the dates of the inter-confederation playoffs for the 2014 FIFA World Cup,[4] a number of alternative matchdays were allocated.