Vested vs. Unvested Balances
One critical factor in this plan — as with many corporate 401(k) plans — is the vesting schedule. While employees always own 100% of their own contributions, the employer matching or profit-sharing contributions may be subject to a vesting schedule.
That means the plan participant might not own all employer contributions yet. A QDRO can only assign the vested portion to the alternate payee. If employer matching contributions are unvested at the time of divorce, they are typically not subject to division.

