A transparent coating film forming composition contains: (A) a polysilazane having units represented by the following formulae (1) and (2), and having predetermined modification rate and weight average molecular weight, (B) an organic solvent containing (B-1) and (B-2), (B-1) an organic solvent having a dielectric constant of 2.1 to 15.0 on average and a higher boiling point under atmospheric pressure (1013 hPa) than that of an organic solvent contained as the component (B-2), and (B-2) a saturated aliphatic hydrocarbon organic solvent; and (C) a predetermined curing catalyst. The mixing ratio of the component (A) and the component (B) satisfies a predetermined range. This provides a transparent coating film forming composition using an organic solvent having high polysilazane solubility, volatility at an appropriate speed during application, high safety and workability, the composition enabling formation of a coating film that is uniform and has high transparency and hardness after curing.