Employer Contributions and Vesting Schedules
401(k) plans in corporate environments often include employer matching or profit-sharing contributions. These usually come with graded or cliff vesting schedules. In other words, part of the plan balance may not be fully vested until the employee has worked a certain number of years.
The QDRO should only divide vested amounts unless the parties agree otherwise. If the employee is not fully vested, unvested amounts won’t transfer to the alternate payee and may eventually be forfeited.

