Employee vs. Employer Contributions
Employee contributions are always 100% vested, meaning they fully belong to the employee. However, employer contributions may be subject to a vesting schedule. If the employee hasn’t met the service requirements, unvested employer contributions will be forfeited—and cannot be assigned to the alternate payee (usually the ex-spouse).
It’s critical that the QDRO accounts for only vested amounts and doesn’t overstate what can be divided. We help clients verify the vesting status before filing.

