The species has been found on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia and on peninsular Malaysia.

[3] The holotype had been collected in Abai Siat, which is southeast of Kota Bharu on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

[6] As of 2015, the orbiculus leaf-nosed bat ess listed as a vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List because of its small extent of occurrence and continuing decline of the extent and quality of its habitat, as well as its population.

It had previously been listed as an endangered species but was reevaluated because its extent of occurrence was recalculated to 20,345 km2 (7,855 sq mi).

[1][7] The orbiculus leaf-nosed bat is a terrestrial species that prefers lowland rainforests, and its habitat is degrading due to logging, agriculture, infrastructure development, plantations, and forest fire.