Dear Community,
I received a small birthday gift (minor 3 digit amount) from an elderly relative in France , given in the form of a french cheque from a french bank. I do not have a french bank account or address in France. How can I cash this cheque? shall I just drive across the border and ask to be paid in cash?
Is there a mustachian way of doing this so I do not end up paying more in costs vs the value of the cheque 
Thanks in advance for the help!
You will generally be charged the lowest fees if you cash or deposit the check at the issuing bank. That applies to banks in Switzerland as well. Generally banks won’t charge fees to cash their own bank checks. For correspondence checks, they will generally charge less to cash their own than to cash those from other banks.
I recommend you look up what the issuing bank in France charges to cash the check. Most likely you will be best off cashing it there the next time you visit France.
Many Swiss banks only cash checks for their own customers. If you want the money right away, take a look at the fees charged by banks at which you have accounts. The cheapest Swiss bank I know of for cashing checks is the Bernerland Bank (15 francs), but for a single check it’s hardly worth opening an account there. Most Swiss banks charge around 30 francs.