There is no single “best” way to divide retirement benefits in a QDRO. What will be “best” in a specific case will depend on many factors, including the type of retirement plan, the nature of the participant’s retirement benefits, and why the parties are seeking to divide those benefits.

In deciding how to divide a participant’s retirement benefits in a QDRO, it is also important to consider two aspects of a participant’s retirement benefits: the benefit payable under the plan directly to the participant for retirement purposes (referred to here as the “retirement benefit”), and any benefit that is payable under the plan on behalf of the participant to someone else after the participant dies (referred to here as the “survivor benefit”). These two aspects of a participant’s retirement benefits are discussed separately in this booklet only in order to emphasize the importance of considering how best to divide retirement benefits.