Yes, this is very common for box1 to be blank. The IRS instructs institutions to report either payments received (Box 1) or amounts billed for qualified tuition and related expenses (Box 2) on the 1098-T. Depending on the Institution, they may report the billed amount (Box 2). Therefore, payments received (Box 1) will be blank.
In TurboTax, you should enter the information from the 1098-T exactly as printed.
You should file the 1098-T if you want TurboTax to determine whether you can claim one of the education credits.
These include:
1) American Opportunity Credit
2) Lifetime Learning Credit
3) Tuition & Fees Deduction
4) Educational expense (deduction) related to your self-employment; or as an educational expense undertaken at the request of your employer for which you did not get reimbursed.
After you enter the information from the 1098-T, TurboTax Education Maximizer (*see attached screenshot) will assist in determining which credit you are eligible for or if you are eligible for the Tuition and Fees Deduction.
