A QDRO is a court order used to divide specific types of retirement plans, including qualified plans, such as a 401(k), and 403(b) plans. A QDRO must comply with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) . ERISA provides a regulatory framework for employer-sponsored retirement plans to protect participants and their beneficiaries. IRAs are not subject to ERISA and are divided using a process known as "transfer incident to divorce."