CELPIP Writing Task 1: Writing an Email

About 150 to 200. Paragon says "about", and publishes no penalty threshold, so ignore prep sites that invent one. For calibration: their own Level 12 sample answers came in at 196 and 197 words.

27 minutes, shown as a countdown on the task screen. Paragon recommends spending roughly 4 to 5 minutes planning and about 3 minutes proofreading within that.

Neither extreme. Paragon's rule: it is not an email to a friend or family member, but also not to a member of the government. Aim polite, friendly and semi-formal, and match the specific reader named in the prompt.

No. Paragon explicitly states you do not need a To, From, or Subject line, and no mailing addresses. Start with the greeting.

Yes. The official instruction is to write at least one sentence for each task, and most will need more. Paragon downgraded a Level 9 response purely for skipping one bullet.

Use a structure, not canned content. Paragon publishes the six-part email skeleton itself, so a framework is fine. But their strategies demand your own words, warn against overusing phrases from the question, and ask for real places, people and situations. Memorised filler sentences damage Content, Vocabulary and Relevance.

Paragon's answer is direct: use your real name or a fake name. Either is accepted.

Yes. The writing screen has basic editing tools, an automatic word counter and spellcheck. Spelling and punctuation still count under Readability, so proofread anyway.