Employee and Employer Contribution Divisions
401(k) accounts may have two types of contributions:
- Employee contributions: These are usually fully vested and easier to divide through a QDRO.
- Employer contributions: May be subject to a vesting schedule. The alternate payee is typically only entitled to the vested portion at the time of division.
If a QDRO doesn’t account for this, the alternate payee could mistakenly assume they’re entitled to more than the vested amount, which the plan won’t pay.

