Tips for writing a formal letter

 Put your address and the date in the
top right-hand corner (but NOT your
name)
 When writing an email you shouldn’t
include any addresses.
 The date would normally go under the
sender’s address and should be
written out in full (date month year)

 Put the name and address of the
person you’re writing to on the left,
above the greeting.

Typical Openings and
Endings
 Make sure you begin Dear…, and use
a formal ending (Yours faithfully or
Yours sincerely).
 We do not use Dear manager to begin
a letter, even if we do not know the
person’s name. Dear Sir/Madam
should be used instead.
 You should only finish Yours sincerely
if your know the name of the person. If
not, Yours faithfully should be used.

 Use formal language (Could you…? I
would be grateful if you could…,etc.)

 Divide your letter into at least three
paragraphs.

Formal Expressions
 I am writing to make a reservation…
 I would like to apply for the job…
 I would be grateful if you could send…
 I enclose…
 I am writing to enquire about…
 I am afraid I will not be able to…
 I am writing to express my
dissatisfaction with…

Which is the more formal
expression from each pair?
 Another thing/Secondly
 The first problem was/Firstly
 Best wishes/Yours faithfully
 I expect to receive/You must send me
 I know/I can accept
 Please write soon/I look forward to
hearing from you
 I am writing to complain about/I am
really angry about

Which is the more formal
expression from each pair?
 Another thing/Secondly
 The first problem was/Firstly
 Best wishes/Yours faithfully
 I expect to receive/You must send me
 I know/I can accept
 Please write soon/I look forward to
hearing from you
 I am writing to complain about/I am
really angry about