An ink ribbon cassette (7) is inserted into and removed from a thermal transfer printer (1) in the longitudinal direction of the thermal head (2). The thermal head is provided with a lifting member(9), while the ink ribbon cassette is provided with a contact element (7a). The lifting member (9) and the contact element (7a) of the ink ribbon cassette are configured to be in contact with each other during insertion and removal of the ink ribbon cassette, and thereby lift the thermal head (2) to widen the space for the ink sheet to pass through.