<prompt> Human: My company has a 401k match. I noticed a few weeks ago that the match had not been applied the entire year shame on me for not checking sooner. I asked the benefits team and I got an odd response. they say that because I started in 2017, the 2018 401k policy does not apply to me and that I must follow the 2017 401k standards and wait one year before getting the company match . The 2018 401k policy states that all employees get a company match immediately and that if you were hired prior to 2018 it is fully vested, otherwise it will take two years to vest. The issue that I have is that I was not eligible to start my 401k until 112018 AND the 2018 policy does not have any stipulation on eligibility other than you must be 21 and a full time employee, which I am. What options do I have here?x200B;To add some more info:x200B;This is from the plan documentation overview-The purpose of the plan is to enable eligible Employees to save for retirement. As well as retirement benefits, the plan provides certain benefits in the event of death, disability, or other termination of employment. The Plan is for the exclusive benefit of eligible Employees and their Beneficiaries.And this is from the plan documentation around eligibility-A.Eligibility RequirementsYou are eligible to participate in the Plan if you are an Employee.However, you are not eligible to participate if you are:a resident of Puerto Ricoa leased EmployeeTemporary Employees However, if you are in the groups listed below, you shall become eligible to participate inthe plan on the first entry date after you have reached age 21 and have completed at least 1,000 Hours of Serviceduring an Eligibility Computation Period:Temporary EmployeesYou are also not eligible to participate if you are an individual who is a signatory to a contract, letter of agreement, or other document that acknowledges your status as an independent contractor not entitled to benefits under the Plan and you are not otherwise classified by the Employer as a common law employee or the Employer does not withhold income taxes, file Form W-2 or any replacement form, or remit Social Security payments to the Federal government for you, even if you are later adjudicated to be a common law employee.You will become eligible to participate in the Plan according to the table below:...Employer Matching contributions-Age requirement 21service requirement-NoneEntry Date- First date of each monthThe plan also states that those hired prior to 2018 will be fully vested upon match and not have the 2 year vesting period.x200B;Does that help clarify? or is there another document besides the plan summary overview I should be checking?x200B;EDIT: Thanks for all the responses! This has been incredibly helpful. to clarify, the payout for employer match should be every pay period, which is two weeks. The plan is also through Fidelity. I will be contacting Fidelity today and possibly the Department Of Labor if I need to. the reason that this match is such a big deal is that it is a 50 match up to 6 of my total paycheck. Half of the 50 match is in company stock. which tripled from low 30s to low 100s from the start of the year to now. I maxed out my 401k believing I was getting this match and it equates to almost 10k missing due to the stock exploding.x200B;Update: Called Fidelity today. According to the plan information on file, I should have been getting this match all year long. I was told to speak with the plan administrator that works at my company, I got an email confirmation of this info from Fidelity. I am reaching out to them later today, with this information and will see what they say.Assistant: What you need to do is be clear on the wording here. You are paraphrasing a bit and depending on how its worded you may very well not be eligible as stated. For instance, if it states employees hiredemployed prior to 2018 will have to wait a vesting period when you came along then you may very well be held to those terms. Different companies have different proceduresagreements set up. The best you can do is look over the agreements and if you happen to not fall under the new amendments then the best you can do is ask someone higher up even though they may or may not be able to get you into the new rule standards.Human: This is from the 2018 plan documentation overview-The purpose of the plan is to enable eligible Employees to save for retirement. As well as retirement benefits, the plan provides certain benefits in the event of death, disability, or other termination of employment. The Plan is for the exclusive benefit of eligible Employees and their Beneficiaries. And this is from the 2018 plan summary overview documentation around eligibility- A. Eligibility Requirements You are eligible to participate in the Plan if you are an Employee. However, you are not eligible to participate if you are: a resident of Puerto Ricoa leased EmployeeTemporary Employees However, if you are in the groups listed below, you shall become eligible to participate in the plan on the first entry date after you have reached age 21 and have completed at least 1,000 Hours of Service during an Eligibility Computation Period: Temporary EmployeesYou are also not eligible to participate if you are an individual who is a signatory to a contract, letter of agreement, or other document that acknowledges your status as an independent contractor not entitled to benefits under the Plan and you are not otherwise classified by the Employer as a common law employee or the Employer does not withhold income taxes, file Form W-2 or any replacement form, or remit Social Security payments to the Federal government for you, even if you are later adjudicated to be a common law employee.You will become eligible to participate in the Plan according to the table below:...Employer Matching contributions-Age requirement 21service requirement-NoneEntry Date- First date of each monthx200B;Does that help clarify? or is there another document besides the plan summary overview I should be checking?  <response>: What about the 2017 plan? Youre only giving the language from the current plan, but the issue has at least as much to do with the 2017 plan since that was in place when you were hired. 