IELTS General Writing Task 1: Informal Letter Samples

As you know, the IELTS General Training is designed to assess applicants who plan to migrate to an English-speaking country for the purpose of working or joining a non-academic form of training.

The subject topic for the IELTS Writing test is different in IELTS Academic and IELTS General. While Task 2 is same for both types of IELTS, in General Task 1, the candidate has to write a letter. It can be formal, semi-formal or informal.

In this post, we will be looking at the sample informal letters,,which is generally written to friends or close acquaintances, for the IELTS General Writing test Task 1.

IETLS General Writing Test

The IELTS General Writing Test takes 1 hour to complete 2 tasks. In task 1 you’ll have to write a letter, while in task 2, you’ll have to write an essay of at least 250 words.

General Writing Task 1

For the IELTS Writing test, you’ll get a total of 1 hour to complete both the tasks, so it is recommended to not spend more than 20 minutes for task 1.

In task 1, you have to write a letter of correspondence, not less than 150 words, explaining a situation, or requesting information of some kind. The question will be a common everyday scenario like expressing your interest in a new job, complaining to a company about bad service, apologizing to a friend for missing a party or so on.

Along with the task question, there’ll be 2 bullet points to outline the specific information and pointers you have to include in your letter. The bullet points may include suggestions and recommendations to help you draft the letter.

Before you start writing the letter, you have to first identify the type of letter you are being asked to write. There are 3 types of letters that can be asked, namely

• Formal
• Semi-Formal
• Informal

It’s important to identify the type of letter that’s being asked as each letter type will require a different communication tone and level of respect. The communication tone and level of respect will differ based on the kind of relationship you have with the person you’re writing to.

IELTS informal letter sample for writing task 1 general training

Informal letters are always addressed to people whom you know personally. The following are to be borne in mind when writing an informal letter

• Perfect grammar is not important
• Phrasal verbs, slangs and idioms need to be used.
• Contractions and reductions need to be used.

Informal Letter Structure

This is the basic structure which will tell you how to start, frame and close an informal letter.  You should try to follow this while writing an informal letter:

Dear [First name only (of your friend)]

Paragraph 1 – Mention the reason why you’re writing to them. (I’m writing this letter to tell you how …)

Paragraph 2 – Talk about 1st bullet point with supporting details

Paragraph 3 – Talk about 2nd bullet point with supporting details

Paragraph 4 – Talk about 3rd bullet point with supporting details

See you soon

Warm Regards

(Your First name only)

Informal letter writing topics

The topics could be as follows:

• Apologising for a damage/inconvenience caused
• Inviting to your place
• Seeking advice on something
• Recommening something

Writing Task 1 Sample Informal Letters

Here are a some samples of informal letters for IELTS Writing Task 1 for the General Training Paper. All of them should be written in not less than 150 words. One of them is done for you.

Question 1

You borrowed something from your friend, later it got damaged. Write letter to your friend.

In your letter, you should :

• apologize for it
• tell how it got damaged
• say how you are going to fix the issue.

Question 2

You were invited to go out by your friend. Due to some reason you couldn’t go. Write a letter apologizing for this and suggest a new time and place to meet.

In your letter, you should:

• apologize
• explain reasons on why you can’t make it
• suggest a new time and place to meet.

Question 3

You recently spent a weekend with your friend in her/his new house. Write a letter to your friend.

In your letter, you should:

• explain what you like about his new house
• tell what you enjoyed most during your staying
• suggest when and where you could meet next time with her/him.

Sample Answer

Hi Anna,

Hope you’re doing great. I treasure the weekend spent with you. I’m filled with glee whenever I think about the time we spent together.

You’ve got a beautiful house. I was very impressed. I loved the varying shades of red that you’ve painted your kitchen in. The bamboo planted near the window side adds to the beauty of the kitchen. It is believed that bamboo brings positive vibrations and I hope it does. 

Also, you cook amazingly well. The cake you baked was my favourite even though I loved your lemon tart. The icing on the cake was amazing. Having had the cake with the light of an incense candle was beautiful. It’s a memory that I would never forget. I gobbled up about three fourths of the cake and it was really kind of you to let me. Thank you! 

I hope to meet you again, very soon. You should come stay with me in Alaska. I’ll try making strawberry tarts, your favourite, though I am a disaster in the kitchen. Don’t hesitate to visit. I’m eagerly waiting for your arrival. 

Looking forward to seeing you

Jane

Here are the 10 examples for the IELTS General Writing Task 1 Sample Informal Letters:

• Example 1
• Example 2
• Example 3
• Example 4
• Example 5
• Example 6
• Example 7
• Example 8
• Example 9
• Example 10