After the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals halted 300 same-sex couples in Michigan from marrying last Saturday, Attorney General Eric Holder said tFriday that he federal government would recognize the unions despite Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder's decision to not.

Holder said the federal government's recognition allows the couples to receive Social Security benefits and file their taxes jointly as well as request legal immigration status for partners, according to Fox News.

"These families will be eligible for all relevant federal benefits on the same terms as other same-sex marriages," Holder said in a statement. "The Governor of Michigan has made clear that the marriages that took place on Saturday were lawful and valid when entered into."

The decision to recognize the unions came less than a month after the U.S. District Judge Bernard Friedman overturned Michigan's gay marriage ban.

Four counties granted the licenses Saturday before the stay was issued, which was then extended indefinitely on Tuesday.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette appealed Friedman's decision, which resulted in Saturday's ruling by the appeals court, USA Today reported.

Afterward, Republican Gov. Snyder said the marriages were legal but the state of Michigan wouldn't recognize them because of the court's stay, according to Fox News.

Similarly, Utah underwent a change of its own last December when a federal judge struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriages. In January, however, the Supreme Court placed a hold on the marriages of 1,000 same-sex couples before Holder stepped in to recognize the unions.

"For purposes of federal law, as I announced in January with respect to similarly situated same-sex couples in Utah," Holder said, adding, "these Michigan couples will not be asked to wait for further resolution in the courts before they may seek benefits to which they are entitled."

Currently there are 17 states along with Washington, D.C. that issue licenses for same-sex marriages. A few states' courts have also overturned gay marriage bans since December, including Kentucky, Oklahoma, Texas and Virginia, but appeals have placed holds on those cases.

According to USA Today, Ingham County issued 57 marriage licenses Saturday for the same-sex couples and married 54 of them. The County Clerk Barb Byrum asked the federal government to recognize the unions in a letter she sent to Holder.

"I'm so thankful to U.S. Attorney General Holder for the recognition for all of these people married on Saturday," she said Friday.

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