Thin film solar cell and method for manufacturing same

Provided are a thin film solar cell and a method for manufacturing the thin film solar cell, wherein the fraction defective during the manufacture of thin film solar cells can be decreased by ensuring electrical insulation in a second through hole and increasing the output of a solar cell by expanding the effective area of a transparent electrode layer. A backside electrode layer, a photoelectric conversion layer and a transparent electrode layer are sequentially laminated in this order on one surface of an insulating substrate; a rear electrode layer is formed on the other surface of the insulating substrate; and the electrode layers are configured so as to be electrically connected with each other via a second through hole that penetrates the insulating substrate. A protective layer is provided in a region surrounding at least the second through hole between the photoelectric conversion layer and the transparent electrode layer laminated on the backside electrode layer or between the backside electrode layer and the photoelectric conversion layer; and the transparent electrode around the second through hole is removed by laser in the region where the protective layer is formed so that the electrode layers are electrically insulated from each other.