Gov. Kathy Hochul says there are 32,000 jobs ready and waiting for the immigrants who have flooded New York in recent months — but an apparent bottleneck in the federal work permit approval process has left them mostly unfilled.

That number is about twice what Hochul said would be open earlier this month, when she said there would be about 18,000 available jobs.

“We’ve now identified — this is a new release — 32,000 jobs are waiting for the Venezuelans who up until now have not been able to work,” the governor said Tuesday during an event on 34th Street, with her staff later adding the jobs would be open to any migrant.

“Once people have their legal status, there are jobs waiting for them.”

More migrants have arrived in New York — and specifically, the Big Apple — than any other place in the nation, Hochul also said.

But despite the preponderance of employment opportunities and 2,100 applications from migrants in New York City’s care, the federal government’s glacial pace has slowed the process to a crawl.

Besides the bureaucratic red tape, state officials have also had to spend more than $88 million to find out who is actually eligible for temporary protected status, which the Biden administration granted a month ago for people fleeing the impoverished country of Venezuela, the governor said.

That status theoretically lets those who entered the United States before July 31 get their work permits more quickly, which both Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams have said would help immigrants get on their feet faster.

“You can imagine the outreach that has to occur — to figure out where these people are, find them, get them the appointment, make sure they can have enough federal workers there to process them, and then … match them to the jobs,” Hochul said Tuesday, as she tried to answer questions about the burgeoning migrant crisis.

The number of people qualified for work since the TPS eligibility was expanded was not immediately available.

Frustration with what seems like an intractable migrant situation is certainly rising in the Empire State. A new poll, released Tuesday, said that only 30% of statewide voters approved of Adams’ handling of the migrant issue, while 46% disapprove.

Hochul fared poorly also, with only 37% of statewide respondents approving of her handling of the immigration issue, while 52% disapprove.

The work permit situation has been particularly daunting.

Last week, city officials conceded they have no idea how many of the more than 40,000 adult asylum seekers they are housing are even eligible to work in the United States.

And none of those who have applied for permits through either the city’s migrant help center or the feds stationed in Lower Manhattan have seen a federal stamp approval.

On Tuesday, the governor said she recognizes New Yorkers’ anger.

“This is the largest migration of humanity since post-World War II, and it’s unfolding in a large scale here in New York City,” Hochul said. “So I understand the frustration. But I think over time, we’ll start to see a shift in how people view us managing this, because we’re going to have solutions. “

“We’re going to have opportunities for people to get good paying jobs here in the state of New York, which is what they came for.”