IELTS General Writing Task 1: Letter Writing

IELTS Letter Writing

IELTS General Training Writing Task 1 requires you to write a letter of at least 150 words. You normally have about 20 minutes for this task.

The letter is assessed on four criteria:

Basic Letter Structure

A strong letter usually follows this structure:

Dear…………..,

Paragraph 1 – Purpose (10 – 20 words) = Personalize the question statement.

Paragraph 2 – Answer to Bullet 1 question (50 – 60 words)

Paragraph 3 – Answer to Bullet 2 question (50 – 60 words)

Paragraph 4 – Answer to Bullet 3 question (50 – 60 words)

Paragraph 5 – Ending Statement (5 – 10 words)

Closing

How To Identify Letter Writing

Formal Letter:   Always ends with an instruction:
Begin your letter as follow:
Dear Sir or Madam,

Semi formal Letter:   Someone you know informally but has something formal. Always ends with an instruction:
Begin your letter as follow:
Dear…………,

Informal Letter:    It is always “write a letter to a friend or your friend” or “write a letter to someone you know well”.  Always ends with an instruction:
Begin your letter as follow:
Dear…………,

Types of IELTS Letters

There are three main types:

Formal letter

• Writing to a company, manager, government office, landlord, etc.
• Example: complaint, application, request for information.
• Greet as Dear Sir/Madam,
• Close as Yours faithfully,
• Tone: I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with…

Example   ||   Practice Real Exam Question

Semi-formal letter

• Writing to someone you know but are not close to.
• Example: landlord, neighbour, colleague, teacher.
• Greet as Dear Mr Smith,
• Close as Yours sincerely,
• Tone: I am writing to ask….

Example   ||   Practice Real Exam Question

Informal letter

• Writing to a friend or family member.
• Example: invitation, apology, advice, congratulations.
• Greet as Dear John,
• Close as Best wishes, / Take care,
• Tone: How are you? I’m just writing….

Example   ||   Practice Real Exam Question

The Most Important Rule

Answer every bullet point in the question.

For example, if the question says:

• Explain what happened.
• Describe the problem.
• Say what you want the person to do.

Your letter must clearly cover all three.

Useful Letter Formula

A simple formula to remember is:

Purpose → Details → Explanation → Request/Action → Closing

For example, in a complaint:

Why are you writing? → What happened? → Why is it a problem? → What solution do you want?

For Band 9

Aim for:

• Clear purpose from the beginning
• All bullet points fully developed
• Consistent tone
• Logical paragraphing
• Specific details and examples
• Natural linking expressions
• Wide and accurate vocabulary
• A mixture of simple and complex sentences
• Few grammatical errors

Quick IELTS Letter Checklist

Before submitting, ask yourself:

✓ Did I write at least 150 words?
✓ Did I answer every bullet point?
✓ Is my purpose clear?
✓ Is my tone appropriate?
✓ Are my paragraphs logical?
✓ Did I use appropriate vocabulary?
✓ Did I check grammar, spelling, and punctuation?

The key to a high score: Don’t try to make the letter unnecessarily complicated. Be clear, relevant, appropriately formal, and well-developed.