Employee vs. Employer Contributions
One of the first things to determine is whether only the employee contributions will be divided, or if employer contributions should also be included. While employee contributions are always fully vested, employer contributions may be subject to a vesting schedule. In a plan like the Abet Usa Inc. 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan & Trust, employer contributions may not be fully vested at the time of divorce, which makes a big difference in what’s actually available for division.
The QDRO should specifically state how to handle unvested employer funds—whether the alternate payee gets a share of future vesting, or only what’s currently available. Failure to address this can result in the alternate payee receiving less or nothing at all.

