A process for producing a hydrogenated polymer, which includes a step of
hydrogenating aromatic rings of an aromatic vinyl
compound--(meth)acrylate copolymer. In the process, the copolymer having
a ratio, A/B, of from 0.25 to 4.0 (A is a molar number of constitutional
units derived from the (meth)acrylate monomer, and B is a molar number of
constitutional units derived from the aromatic vinyl monomer) is
hydrogenated in a solvent in the presence of a catalyst which is composed
of zirconium oxide supporting palladium. By the process, a highly
transparent, hydrogenated polymer is stably and rapidly produced for a
long period of time or repeatedly.