It was erected as the Diocese of Kuala Lumpur by Pope Pius XII on 25 February 1955, and was elevated to the rank of a Metropolitan Archdiocese on 18 December 1972, with the suffragan sees of Malacca-Johor and Penang.

It also administers the capital city of Malaysia, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur as well as the federal administrative centre of Putrajaya and the urbanised states of Selangor and Negeri Sembilan in the central region as well as Pahang and Terengganu on the East Coast.

[3] This led to the formation of Vicariate of Siam and Kedah, which expanded towards the entire Malayan Peninsula and Singapore.

Bishop Anthony Soter Fernandez of Penang was appointed as the 2nd Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur.

[5][6] During the consistory on 19 November 2016, Pope Francis installed Archbishop Emeritus Anthony Soter Fernandez as a cardinal, making him the first bishop from Malaysia to be appointed.