 Chan Kong Choy was born in Bentong, Pahang on 17 May 1955 to an ethnic Malaysian Chinese family of Cantonese descent with ancestry from Yunfu, Guangdong, China.He studied in Kolej Tunku Abdul Rahman in 1975 for his Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia (STPM).He graduated with first class honours in Chinese Study from University of Malaya in 1979.