According to Forbes latest rich list he is worth $59 billion but William Gates III recently found out that in the face of determined bureaucracy even that amount wealth does not necessarily assure you of a smooth passage.

According to reports in the American business magazine BusinessWeek, the software billionaire when applying for a visa to Nigeria was asked provide proof of income with his visa application. It took the intervention of a specialist Visa processing company to obtain the necessary letter from the Gates’ bank to reassure the Nigerian authorities.

Nigerian Visa rules do not explicitly require visitors to show proof of income as letters of invitation for Nigerian persons or corporate bodies are acceptable alternatives.

Bill Gate visited Nigeria in 2006 in connection with the activities of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the charity which has an endowment of $31.9 billion has been active in several projects to combat AIDs and Malaria in Nigeria.