Employee vs. Employer Contributions
401(k) accounts consist of two primary buckets: employee salary deferrals and employer contributions (like profit-sharing or matching). In some cases, employer contributions are subject to vesting. If your spouse isn’t fully vested, they might not be entitled to all of the employer-contributed funds.
Your QDRO should clearly specify:
- Whether the alternate payee is to receive a portion of just the employee contributions or both employee and employer contributions
- Whether the division includes gains and losses from the date of marriage through the date of distribution or other applicable period

