Investigating judges have recommended the former presidential candidate be tried on a series of charges including misusing public money and corporate assets and conspiracy.
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Francois Fillon had been on course to win the French presidency two years ago, before revelations published by the investigative newspaper Le Canard Enchaine in January 2017 shattered his credibility.
The newspaper published allegations that his wife Penelope Fillon had been paid €680,000 ($725,000) as a parliamentary assistant to her husband between 1986 and 2013, without ever working at the National Assembly. The couple's two sons were also linked to fake jobs in parliament between 2005 and 2007.
Fillon's support plummeted to third place as a result of the scandal, paving the way for newcomer Emmanuel Macron to beat far-right leader Marine Le Pen in the May 2017 run-off vote.
Fillon denies charges
Investigative judges have recommended the conservative Republican politician be tried on charges of embezzling public money, misuse of corporate assets, conspiracy and failing to comply with transparency rules, judicial sources said.
Fillon has denied the charges, condemning them as a smear campaign orchestrated by political rivals. He can appeal the decision to put him on trial.
His lawyer, Antonin Levy, told AFP on Tuesday that news about the trial had been leaked to the press before his client had been informed. "It demonstrates how this investigation has been carried out and we will react to the facts once we have seen the document ourselves," he added.
What you need to know about Francois Fillon and "Penelopegate"
Francois Fillon is struggling to rebuild his presidential campaign after accusations that he hired family members in "fake jobs". But what exactly has Fillon been accused of - and how has he defended himself?
Image: picture-alliance/abaca/A. Robert
Frontrunner no more
Many expected Francois Fillon to be a shoo-in for the presidency. The former French prime minister easily won the conservative primary with 67 percent of the vote. But then Penelopegate hit. Weekly newspaper Canard Enchaine reported that Fillon's wife Penelope and two of his children had received close to one million euros in salaries from Fillon, paid by the state. Fillon's popularity tumbled.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Bureau
Working for her husband?
It is not illegal in France to hire family members as parliamentary assistants - provided they have real jobs. Fillon's wife was paid 830,000 euros ($900,000) as a parliamentary assistant for 15 years, working (or - as some have suggested - "working") for Fillon and his replacement in parliament. Police are currently investigating whether Penelope provided services for the salary she received.
Image: picture alliance/abaca/Y. Korbi
Keeping it in the family
Reporters also revealed that Fillon paid his two oldest children 84,000 euros for working as assistants between 2005 and 2007. Fillon argued that he had hired Marie and Charles Fillon for their legal expertise - though the two were still in law school when they had jobs with their father.
Image: Picture-Alliance/dpa/R. Jensen
More accusations
Penelope was also employed at an art magazine from May 2012 to December 2013, where she was paid roughly 5,000 euros a month. The owner of the magazine had previously been recommended for France's highest honor, the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor, by then-prime minister Francois Fillon. Fillon has said that these two facts were unrelated.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/E. Feferberg
A smear campaign?
Fillon has repeatedly denied charges that he used "fake jobs" to enrich his family. He has said that he employed his wife and children because he trusted them and accused the media of running a smear campaign against him. Nevertheless, Penelopegate has severely damaged the campaign of the 63-year old, who has sold himself to French voters as an honest family man keen on cutting public spending.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/P. Desmazes
Certainly not a first
The accusations against Fillon are hardly the first of their kind in France. Ex-President Jacques Chirac was found guilty in 2011 of employing party members in "fake jobs" as mayor of Paris. Former president Nicolas Sarkozy is being investigated for illegal campaign financing, and presidential candidate Marine Le Pen is suspected of paying officials in her far-right party with EU funds.
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Others charged
Fillon's Welsh-born wife Penelope faces lesser charges of complicity in the misuse of public money and conspiring to misuse corporate assets.
She had also been paid a monthly salary by a magazine owned by a billionaire friend of the couple, La Revue des Deux Mondes. However, the editor said he had never seen her. Fillon himself admitted taking an interest-free loan of €50,000 euros from the magazine's owner Marc Ladreit de Lacharriere, without declaring it to a transparency watchdog, according to AFP.
Marc Joulaud replaced Fillon in the National Assembly while Fillon served as prime minister under President Nicolas Sarkozy from 2007-2012. Joulaud then moved on to the European Parliament as a deputy, until the end of his mandate this month.
Joulaud will also stand trial for misuse of public funds, Le Monde reported. Joulaud also employed Penelope as a parliamentary assistant.
