(Bloomberg) -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro issued a decree setting a 9% tax on private companies for the creation of a state-run pension fund.

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Earlier this month, the government-controlled National Assembly passed a law allowing a levy of up to 15%. The decree goes into effect immediately.

Companies will be charged 9% of the total amount paid to employees to help finance the pensions, according to the decree published in the Official Gazette dated May 16. The decree includes an exemption of up to one year for companies listed in a national registry.

Maduro’s government is seeking to take advantage of a revived dollarized economy after years of crisis to spread some of the wealth to Venezuelans whose pensions are paid in bolivars.

READ MORE: Maduro Seeks to Tax Businesses for His New State Pension Fund

Venezuelan business group Fedecamaras has said that the plan adds a further burden to a private sector already grappling with a complex taxing structure.

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