The 2020 Champion County match will take place in Sri Lanka, with MCC president Kumar Sangakkara captaining the club.
Essex, who won the title for the second time in three years last month, will face the Marylebone Cricket Club in a four-day match from March 24 at the legendary Galle International Stadium.
A day earlier, the first of England’s two Tests against Sri Lanka will have finished at the ground.
Sangakkara retired from Test cricket in 2015 but played for Surrey in the Championship for two years after that.
“It is hugely important to support cricket in countries such as Sri Lanka and taking the Champion County match to Galle is a fantastic way for the club to provide its backing for the game on a global level,” he said.
“I am looking forward to playing for and indeed captaining the MCC team, which will be full of exciting young talent ready to challenge the county champions.”
In recent years, the fixture – which has been running since 1970 in its current guise – has taken place in Abu Dhabi, Barbados and Dubai after moving away from Lord’s.
The MCC’s World Cricket Committee will also meet in Sri Lanka in March.
