telc B1 Schreiben: the e-mail with four points, marking criteria, scores, example and Redemittel

Schreiben in telc Deutsch B1, also called Zertifikat Deutsch, is a single task: you reply to an e-mail, personal or semi-formal, and cover four guiding points. It gets half an hour at the end of the written exam. The letter has no pass mark of its own; its points are added to reading, language elements and listening. You can prepare on your own with the official practice test and this guide.¹

telc B1 writing exam format

The written exam lasts 150 minutes and consists of reading, language elements (Sprachbausteine), listening and writing. Writing, the Schriftlicher Ausdruck, gets 30 minutes, and dictionaries and phones are not allowed.¹

You receive an e-mail and answer it, covering all four points. Before you start, the task tells you to plan a sensible order, a subject line, a greeting, an opening and a close. telc gives no word count. You do not need a sender address or a date as in a paper letter.¹

How telc B1 differs from Goethe B1 and ÖSD B1 is explained in our comparison of Goethe, ÖSD and telc. The Goethe B1 writing module is built differently and has its own guide: Goethe B1 Schreiben.

How many points the telc B1 letter is worth

The letter brings up to 45 of the 225 points in the written exam, more than the 30 for language elements. You pass with at least 135 points in the written exam and 45 of 75 in the oral.¹

Good reading and listening scores can make up for a weak letter. A strong letter, in turn, wins back points lost there.

telc B1 Schreiben marking criteria

The letter is marked on three criteria, each in bands A, B, C and D. The bands are worth 5, 3, 1 and 0 points, and the sum is multiplied by three, which gives the maximum of 45.¹

• Aufgabenbewältigung, task completion: A for all four points covered, B for three, C for two, D for one or none.
• Kommunikative Gestaltung, how the text is built: linking words, logic, register, range of vocabulary.
• Formale Richtigkeit, grammar and spelling.

A point counts as covered even if you deal with it in one short sentence. You may even cover two points in a single sentence.¹

Staying on topic matters most. A text with little or no link to the task gets D on all three criteria, which means zero. A text on the right topic but in the wrong situation loses only the first criterion; the language is still marked.¹

The top band for how the text is built is ruled out when the features of an e-mail are missing, the register is wrong or wavers, the points stand side by side without links, or most sentences start with "Ich" or "Wir". For grammar, being understood comes first: wrong endings and genders count for less than agreement errors.¹

Two licensed telc raters read every letter. If they disagree, the second rating counts.¹

telc B1 Schreiben example: a reply to a friend

We wrote this task ourselves in the exam format; it is not in the official practice test.

Ihr Freund Jonas möchte im Herbst einen Deutschkurs in Ihrer Stadt machen und bittet Sie per E-Mail um Hilfe. Antworten Sie ihm und gehen Sie auf diese vier Punkte ein.

• Welche Sprachschule empfehlen Sie?
• Warum gefällt Ihnen diese Schule?
• Wo kann Jonas während des Kurses wohnen?
• Machen Sie einen Vorschlag für ein Treffen.

A possible answer of 94 words:

Betreff: Dein Deutschkurs im Herbst

Lieber Jonas,

wie schön, dass du nach Graz kommen willst! Mein Tipp ist die Sprachschule am Hauptplatz, dort habe ich selbst zwei Kurse gemacht.

Mir haben vor allem die kleinen Gruppen gefallen. Die Lehrerinnen sprechen nur Deutsch, aber sie erklären alles sehr geduldig.

Wegen der Wohnung musst du dir keine Sorgen machen. Die Schule vermittelt Zimmer bei Familien, und das ist meistens günstiger als ein Hotel.

Wenn du ankommst, holen wir dich vom Bahnhof ab und gehen zusammen essen. Schreib mir einfach, wann dein Zug kommt.

Liebe Grüße
Mehmet

Each point has its own paragraph, the "du" holds to the end, and the sentences open in different ways: "Mir haben", "Wegen der Wohnung", "Wenn du ankommst". This is what would cost points:

1. No suggestion to meet. Three points covered means band B on the first criterion: 3 points instead of 5, or 9 instead of 15 after multiplying.¹
2. A sudden "Sie". The register wavers, and the top band for how the text is built is gone.
3. "Ich empfehle die Schule. Ich finde sie gut. Ich wohne in Graz." Mostly "Ich" openings also cost the top band on the second criterion.
4. Unlinked points. Four separate answers with no "aber", "und" or "wenn" between them stand side by side, and that too blocks the top band.

Redemittel for telc B1 Schreiben

These phrases are ours. Learn them as blocks; they fit almost any situation.

How to prepare for telc B1 Schreiben

The official practice test contains a task in exam format, the marking criteria and how the score is calculated. Write against a 30-minute timer, then check three things: are all four points covered, is there a greeting, opening and close, and do your sentences start with something other than "Ich"? Practise both registers, since you may be writing to a friend or to someone you barely know.¹

If you fail the written exam, you can retake it on its own within twelve months of the date on your result sheet, and the latest result counts. The other parts are described on our page about the telc B1 exam.²

Источники

· 2 проверены 08.11.2026

1. 1telc Deutsch B1: Übungstest 1, telc gGmbH
2. 2telc Prüfungsregularien, telc gGmbH · от 15.04.2025