The South American brackish water snail Heleobia charruana (d’Orbigny, 1841), abundant in Uruguay, is newly recorded for three western European countries: the United Kingdom (2003), the Netherlands (2014) and Belgium (2017). Its identity was confirmed using morphological and molecular methods. The method successfully used to isolate DNA and to further amplify and sequence the full mitochondrial COI barcoding fragment from an old dry shell without damage is described in detail. A short synonymy with references to the main literature is presented. The species’ range and ecological data are reviewed for both South America and Europe and the implications of the finds are discussed.