Employee vs. Employer Contributions
One of the biggest areas of confusion in dividing a 401(k) plan is understanding the difference between contributions made by the employee and those made by the employer. In this plan, both employee salary deferrals and employer profit-sharing contributions may be part of the account balance.
Employer contributions are often subject to vesting schedules, which means a portion could be forfeited if the employee leaves the company before becoming fully vested. If you are the alternate payee, you’ll want to ensure the QDRO reflects how vested and unvested balances are handled at the time of division.

