Employee and Employer Contributions
Most 401(k) plans include both employee contributions (fully owned by the employee) and employer contributions, which may be subject to vesting schedules. When preparing the QDRO, it’s important to specify whether only vested funds are included and to identify any unvested amounts that may forfeit if a participant leaves the company before meeting vesting requirements.
For example, if the participant is only 40% vested in employer contributions, only that portion may be divided. The QDRO must be clear—some plans distribute a flat percentage across the entire account balance, while others separate vested and unvested funds.

