Employee and Employer Contributions
Most 401(k) plans include contributions made by both the employee (participant) and the employer. While employee contributions are always 100% vested, employer contributions often come with a vesting schedule. That means only a portion of the employer’s matching contributions may be earned (or “vested”) at the time of divorce.
Your QDRO will need to clearly state whether it covers only vested funds or whether it includes a shared interest in future vesting of employer contributions post-divorce. Sometimes, couples negotiate for only currently vested amounts, while in other cases, they agree to split everything that ever becomes vested.

