Employee and Employer Contributions
In most 401(k) plans, employee contributions are fully vested right away since they’re made with the participant’s own income. However, employer contributions—such as matching payments—often come with a vesting schedule. This means the participant must work a certain number of years to keep those amounts.
When drafting the QDRO, you can only award the portion the participant was actually vested in as of the agreed-upon division date. Any unvested employer contributions may be forfeited if the participant leaves the employer before vesting.

