1. Employee vs. Employer Contributions
Participant contributions (from salary deferrals) are always 100% vested and can typically be divided without issue. But employer contributions (made by the company through the profit-sharing plan) may be subject to a vesting schedule. Only the vested portion can be divided through a QDRO.
You’ll want to determine whether the participant spouse is fully vested or if only part of the employer contributions are available for distribution. The QDRO can safely exclude unvested funds, or state that only the vested portion at the time of division is included.

