Format of a Business Letter

The business letter format to be used for the test is the block format.
Note: Students may double-space their work, if they think it will allow them to make changes more easily. This should
only be applied to the body of the letter and not to the other parts.
Parts of the Business Letter
1. Heading
The heading consists of your address and the
date.
51 Spring Street
!egina S" !#T $N%
&anuary #, ''
'. Inside Address
The inside address consists of the name and
address of the person to whom you are writing.
(t usually appears four lines below the heading
if a word processor is used, or one line below
if it is hand-written.
Sam )unt, *irector
The "nitting +ill
1$, # -.enue
Toronto /N +#0 %11
#. Salutation
The most traditional salutation or greeting for
a business letter is Dear followed by +r., +s.,
+rs., or +iss and the person2s last name, and
ending with a colon.
*ear +r. Smith:
*ear +s. 1lack:
*ear +rs. 1rown:
*ear +iss 3reen:

$. Body
The body is the main part of the letter. (n it,
you write what you ha.e to say to the person.
Skip one line after the salutation.
4 1e concise. 5nsure that
sufficient information is gi.en
so that your purpose is clearly
understood and your re6uest
well recei.ed.
4 1usiness letters are usually
formal, so the language that
you use should also be formal.
5. Closing
The closing is the ending to your letter. (t
appears at the bottom of the letter, under the
body. Skip one line after the body. /nly the
first word in the closing should be capitali7ed.
(t is always followed by a comma.
8ours truly,
Sincerely,
9. Signature
The signature is your full name signed. 8our
signature should appear directly below the
closing. (t should always be written in ink.
%. Your name printed
:. Commonly Used Abbreviations for Provines
and !erritories
;ro.ince Symbol
-lberta -1
1ritish <olumbia 1<
+anitoba +1
New 1runswick N1
Newfoundland N=
Northwest Territories NT
No.a Scotia NS
Nuna.ut N>
/ntario /N
;rince 5dward (sland ;5
?uebec ?< or ;?
Saskatchewan S"
8ukon 8T
(http://ednet.edc.gov.ab.ca/k_12/testing/achieveme
nt/bulletins/gr9_ela_toc.asp)
Addressing an "nvelope

#$
%eturn Address
The return address is the name and address of
the person sending the letter. The return
address appears in the top left corner of the
en.elope and consists of your name, street
address, city or town, pro.ince, and postal
code.
&5-N 1!/@N
51 S;!(N3 ST
!53(N- S" S#T $N%
&$ 'ailing Address
The mailing address is the name and address
to which the letter is being sent. (t always
appears in the centre of the en.elope. (n a
business letter, the address on the en.elope is
the same as the inside address of the letter.
There may be separate lines for the title of
the addressee A5ditor, *irector, ;residentB, the
di.ision or department the person works in,
and the name of his or her company, business,
or organi7ation.
S-+ )>NT
*(!5<T/!
T)5 "N(TT(N3 +(CC
1$#, # -05
T/!/NT/ /N +#0 %11
The following points are taken from the Canadian
Addressing Standards document at
http:DDwww.canadapost.ca.
1.
-ddresses should be typed or written in upper
case or block letters.
'.
-ll lines of the address must be formatted with
a uniform left margin.
#.
;unctuation marks Acommas, periods, etc.B
should not be used unless they are part of a
place name Ae.g., ST. &/)NESB.
$.
The postal code should always appear on the
same line as the municipality and pro.ince
name and should be separated from the
pro.ince by two spaces.
5.
The two-letter symbol for the pro.ince name
should be used where.er possible Asee pre.ious
pageB.
9. The return address should be formatted in the
same way as the main address.