PURPOSE: To prevent aggregation of a coating material or ground fogging and enable sufficient water resistance to be displayed at both record parts and non-record parts even when a thermal recording material is produced under ordinary drying conditions, by providing N-methylolurethanated polyvinyl alcohol in or on a recording layer.

CONSTITUTION: N-methylolurethanated polyvinyl alcohol is used as a binder for forming a thermal recording layer or a resin component constituting a protective layer provided on the recording layer. N-methylolurethanated polyvinyl alcohol is prepared by, for example, bringing polyvinyl alcohol into reaction with urea under heating to prepare urethanated polyvinyl alcohol and then bringing the latter into reaction with formaldehyde to effect methlolation. Although the urethanation degree and the methylolation degree are not particularly limited, it is generally preferable that 5W30% of vinyl alcohol units in the polyvinyl alcohol are urethanated and at least 3% of the urethanated vinyl alcohol units are methylolated.