Basic rules

(I)

How To Write A Formal Letter 

• First, write the return (sender’s) address on the top left-hand corner of the letter.
• The address of the recipient (the person whom you are writing to) should also be written on the left-hand side, just below your address.
• The recipient’s address should be followed by the date on which you are writing the letter.
• Next, you should write the subject of the letter, in short and precise terms. Ex - Application for the post of Accounts Executive.
• Before starting the text (body) of the letter, you should write the salutation or greeting - Dear Sir or Madam. You may also address the recipient by writing dear, the title (Mr., Mrs., Ms. or Miss, Dr, etc), followed by his/her surname - Dear Mr. /Ms Williams.
• The content of the letter should be short, crisp and formal in nature. The first paragraph should state the purpose of the letter in brief - to enquire, complain, request for something, etc.
• The later paragraph/paragraphs in the letter should be continuation of what you have stated in the introduction. Since formal letters demand brevity, you should ensure that you don’t make the content lengthy. Concentrate only on the essential facts. Be precise and organize the content in a clear and logical manner.
• The last or the concluding paragraph of your formal letter should mention or state what action you expect the recipient to take - to send you information, to refund, to rectify, etc. 

Tips 

• While writing a formal letter, do not make use of informal language, like abbreviation, even if you know the recipient personally.
• Do not go on expanding the content, as it will make your letter lengthy and be against the rules of writing a formal letter. Be as precise as possible.
• Make sure that the first paragraph of your letter doesn’t exceed five lines.
• After writing the letter, cross-check for any grammatical errors and spelling mistakes.
• Even if you are complaining, be polite in your words.
• Be concise and relevant.
• The letter should be clearly divided into three paragraphs - introduction, description and conclusion.

(II)

Guidelines for Writing a Formal Letter

1. Your address  

• Your address should appear on the
• left-hand corner.

2. A horizontal line across the page sepa  rates your address from the recipient’s address.

3. Address of the person to whom you are writing

• The recipient’s address should be
• below your address.
• The postcode and name of the town should be underlined.

4. Date

• The date is written on the right along the same line as the last line of the recipient’s address.
• The month should be spelt out (i.e. it should be in words, not numbers). It must be written in full (do not use abbreviations such as Sept) and in capital letters.

5. Salutation/Greeting  

• If you know the name of the recipient, then do use his surname (Dear Mr Tan)
• If you do not know the name of the person to whom you are writing, then use Dear Sir or Madam

6. Subject heading  

• The subject heading gives the reader an idea what the letter is about.
• Write the subject heading directly below the salutation and it should be underlined

7. The body of the letter

• The body of the letter refers to the contents of your letter.
• It should be divided into short and clear paragraphs.
• All paragraphs should be numbered except for the first and last paragraphs.

a. In the first paragraph, you should state the reason for writing (whether it is to inform, to complain, to invite etc).

b. From the second paragraph onwards, you should include information that is deemed necessary, depending on what you are writing about.

The number of paragraphs depends on what you are writing.

c. In the last paragraph, state what you expect from the recipient. This is usually in the form of an action or response. It is a common practice to end a formal letter with phrases such as I look forward to hearing from you or I hope prompt action will be taken to solve this problem.

A note of thanks is usually included  

• Remember to organise the information in a clear and logical manner.
• Also, do not write lengthy paragraphs.

8. Ending

• You can end the letter by writing “Yours faithfully”.
• In practice, we usually use “Yours
• sincerely”, if we know the recipient but for exam purposes I would advise you to use only “Yours faithfully”.

9. Signature

       Do not forget to sign the letter and write your name below it in capital letters with in brackets.

Above is a letter of job application. The numbers refer to the notes above.