Justice Minister Merrick Garland says that the plane was illegally purchased through a shell company and then smuggled out of the USA, to be used by Maduro and people connected to him.
Venezuela's government confirms the seizure in a statement on Monday, and describes the USA's actions as pirate-like.
The plane has, according to CNN, been in the Dominican Republic for the past few months and has been used by Maduro for state visits around the world.
The situation in Venezuela has been unstable since the country went to the polls on July 28.
Both the incumbent president Nicolás Maduro and the opposition declared themselves winners, and the unrest that has followed has so far claimed 27 lives. Nearly 200 people have been injured and around 2,400 have been arrested.
Maduro's claim to election victory has been questioned by several Latin American countries, the USA, and the EU.
