What is required in order for a DRO to qualify as a QDRO under ERISA and the IRC?
- The name and last known mailing address of the participant and each alternate payee;
- The name of each plan to which the order applies;
- The dollar amount or percentage (or the method of determining the amount or percentage) of the benefit to be paid to the alternate payee;
- The number of payments or time period to which the order applies;
- The order must not require a plan to provide an alternate payee or participant with any type or form of benefit, or any option, not otherwise provided under the Plan;
- The order must not require a plan to provide for increased benefits (determined on the basis of actuarial value);
- The order must not require a plan to pay benefits to an alternate payee that are required to be paid to another alternate payee under another order previously determined to be a QDRO; and
- The order must not require a plan to pay benefits to an alternate payee in the form of a qualified joint and survivor annuity for the lives of the alternate payee and his or her subsequent spouse.
For more information on QDRO requirements, the US Department of Labor developed a comprehensive, accessible resource "The Division of Retirement Benefits Through Qualified Domestic Relations Orders."