1. Employee and Employer Contributions
Most 401(k) plans have both employee (pre-tax or Roth) and employer (matching or profit-sharing) contributions. Typically, your QDRO can assign any or all of these components. Make sure the QDRO specifically identifies whether the payout includes:
- Employee deferrals
- Employer contributions (vested only)
- Earnings and losses on assigned funds
Employer contributions often come with a vesting schedule. You can’t divide what hasn’t vested unless your QDRO specifies an alternative approach, such as awarding a share of future vesting.

