1. Employee and Employer Contributions
The QDRO must distinguish between employee contributions—which are typically 100% vested—and employer contributions—which may be subject to a vesting schedule. If part of the balance you’re trying to divide comes from unvested employer contributions, those may be lost if not vested at the date of divorce or QDRO execution (depending on how the QDRO is written).
Make sure to confirm the vesting details with the plan administrator before finalizing any division methods. For example, you may want to:
- Divide only vested amounts as of a certain date
- Divide total account and have the alternate payee share in future vesting

