unvested

Unvested describes rights, benefits, or ownership interests that have not yet become fully owned or guaranteed to the holder.

In employment contexts, unvested stock options or retirement benefits are those an employee hasn't yet earned the right to keep permanently, typically because they haven't worked long enough to satisfy vesting requirements.

If you leave before your shares are unvested, you forfeit them.

The term appears most often in discussions of compensation packages, pensions, and equity grants.