1. Employee and Employer Contributions
The QDRO needs to clearly identify if the alternate payee is receiving a portion of the participant’s:
- Employee contributions only (what the participant contributed)
- Employer contributions (which may be subject to a vesting schedule)
- Or the entire account balance as of a specific date
Employer contributions often come with a vesting schedule. If part of the employer match hasn’t vested by the valuation date, that portion typically can’t be awarded to the alternate payee. In The Yarco 401(k) Plan, you’ll want to confirm with plan administrators which portions were vested as of the division date.

